


The Volturi's Mother Witch (NaNoWriMo 2020)

by ThorneKate



Category: Twilight (Movies), Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Edward Cullen Bashing, Edward Cullen Being An Asshole, F/F, F/M, Gun Violence, Inaccurate Ancient Greek Religion & Lore, M/M, Multi, References to Ancient Greek Religion & Lore, Talk of past trauma, The Volturi (Twilight) is Good, alec is a total momma's boy, carlisle has an unknown biological child, carlisle is a bit dense, carlisle loses his shit, edward is an abusive dick, esme is a bitch, jane being an angsty teen, lots of magic, persephone revels in torturing edward for being abusive, protective mate Marcus, protective mate aro, protective mate caius, volturi queens are cool lesbians
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-13
Packaged: 2021-03-18 17:20:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 27,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29372238
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThorneKate/pseuds/ThorneKate
Summary: Some say magic has left our world...What they don't know is that we never left, we are simply in hiding.We may be gone for now,But we never left...***PRE-DISCLAIMER: DO NOT ATTEMPT THE SPELLS OR RITUALS AT HOME. WHILE I HAVE DONE MY RESEARCH CAREFULLY, I HOLD NO LEGAL RESPONSIBILITY.***
Relationships: Aro (Twilight)/Caius (Twilight)/Marcus (Twilight)/Original Female Character(s), Athenodora/Didyme/Sulpicia (Twilight), Carlisle Cullen/Original Female Character(s), Embry Call/Bella Swan
Kudos: 17





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Casting (Recasting as well as keeping some the same):
> 
> *Aro - Ben Barnes  
> *Marcus - Alexander Vlahos  
> *Caius - Jamie Campbell Bower  
> *Helena - Sophia Rodriguez de Leon  
> *Jane - Dakota Fanning  
> *Alec - Cameron Bright
> 
> *Hecate - Rachel Weisz (goddess of magic, witchcraft, and spirits)  
> *Selene - Britt Robertson (goddess of the moon)  
> *Nyx - Sharon Adel (goddess of night and darkness)  
> *Athena - Michelle Rodriguez (goddess of wisdom and war)  
> *Themis - Gal Gadot (goddess of natural and divine order and law)
> 
> *Ares - Joseph Morgan (god of war)  
> *Apollo - Chris Daughtry (god of music, art, poetry, medicine, and knowledge)  
> *Pan - Ian Somerhalder (god of nature and sexuality)  
> *Poseidon - Jason Momoa (god of seas)

Today is the three hundred and fifteenth anniversary of my children’s disappearance. Three hundred and fifteen years since I last saw them and not a year has gone by since that I haven’t stopped my search to bring them home. They were only ten years old when I was forced to send them away for their safety. With their powers coming in early, and the mindset of the world, it was not safe for me to stay with them for fear of the humans trying to eradicate everyone that they saw as different or as they called the _offenders_ witches.

As my tradition on this Samhain (pronounced sow-hen) eve, I pulled my items for the same spell that I have tried so desperately to make work. Two sprigs of rosemary for remembrance, a pinch of Cypress for longevity, a shredded yarrow root for contacting relatives, and two tablespoons of chopped Ground Holly for spirit calling. While I prepared the items in a silver bowl, I mentally repeated their names. _Alecsander and Jane Ann._ With a prick on my left finger for blood from the heart, I started the spell.

_“Powers of the witches rise,_

_Course unseen across the skies,_

_Come to us who call you near,_

_Come to us and settle here._

_Blood of my blood, I summon thee_

_Blood of my blood, return to me.”_

And just as the many years before, when I put a drop of the mixture on the map, nothing happened. I sighed in resignation as the desperation left me in favor of despair. After the remnants had been cleaned away and I settled into my sofa in another defeat, there was a little poof from my sacred space.

“Mother, I’m not in the mood right now.” When there was no reply, I let out a huff and got up to see who had popped into my house, and the figures I saw were not who I had expected.

“Uncle Ares, Aunt Selene, Aunt Nyx? What are you all doing here? You normally don’t just show up unless you found something and even then Mother is with you.” And before you ask, yes they are the Greek god and goddesses. My mother, Hecate, is the Greek goddess of magic so she tends to get sidetracked on the major Wiccan holidays.

“Little warrior, she sends her love, but she has to deal with some mortals who decided it was a good idea to try to bring a dead soul back to life. Any luck with the spell this time around?” As I shook my head, my uncle pulled me in for a hug as the tears welled up in my eyes. He may be my uncle, but Ares is the closest thing that I have ever had to a father figure.

“I wish we had better news ourselves, little dove, but the furthest we have ever been able to find traces of their magic is in Europe. Still no exact country yet though. I’m so sorry dear.” Aunt Nyx tried her best, but we’ve been stuck on the Europe lead for a century now with nothing coming from it.

“Sweetheart, we all want to bring them home to you and we are trying our hardest to chase down every lead we get but it may be time to consider that -”

“NO! They are not gone from this world! I still feel their magic in my very soul, and I refuse to have you try to convince me otherwise.” Aunt Selene has tried many times in the past to get me to think about alternatives, but I refuse to. I know my twins are alive and I will not rest until I am finally reunited with my family.

“Helena, I wasn't suggesting that they weren’t. But it is time to consider that their human side is no longer human. They never came of age for the immortality your mother offered for them so we can’t track them that way. We need a new plan. And while I hate to ask this of you today of all days, are you willing to check up on a coven in America for me? Hades said they haven’t been doing their sacrifices and he is getting impatient with them.” As I looked out into the rest of my small house, something in the back of my head was telling me to go. That something big would come of the transition.

“I’ll do it, Selene, but this is the last one. Didn’t you create a coven specifically for this purpose anyway?” She rolled her eyes before she answered me.

“Yes, but they are unavailable to handle the problem. Something about an old friendship that would be put at risk… No matter, I will take care of everything. When you arrive, call for me and I’ll have everything set. The coven is located in a small part of Washington state called Forks. There’s a lot of rain and it's mostly forest so you should feel right at home. Plus there is a beach about an hour’s drive from the town should you ever need Poseidon’s help.” _At least there is a plus side to this trip._ “They will also be notified that you are coming and to treat you as a guest. Oh, there is also a pack of wolf shifters in the area as well, but I will notify them personally. One of Ephraim Black’s descendants is the chief and his son is a shifter.”

“Fine. When do I leave? Tonight or tomorrow?” _Luckily, I have magic to make packing a breeze except for my more_ witchy _supplies._

“Tomorrow morning. Your mother will be the one to pick you up for the journey. Can’t exactly fly the mortal way without a passport, and since you don’t have any of the modern identity papers we can’t get you one.” We both shared a small laugh on that.

“Ok. So are you all staying long, or do you all have responsibilities to get back to?” They all nodded, which I was expecting honestly. They are a god and goddesses after all.

“Sorry Lena, but duty calls since the mortals have been getting more and more reckless with their lives. But we will visit again after you get settled in. We just wanted to see you today since it is always a difficult time for you.” They engulfed me in a group hug after we said our goodbyes and I set about packing all of my supplies by hand while I let magic do the rest.

This should be a new and interesting chapter of my life and hopefully, it brings me one step closer to my beloved twins.

Packing took much longer than I had anticipated, and I didn’t end up finishing up until the early hours of the morning. With everything now fully packed up, I decided to just go to the little café that was about a twenty-minute walk from home and grabbed my breakfast to go. Just a simple black tea and a chocolate chip muffin. By the time I got back, mother was waiting for me in what was left of the living room and shrinking the non-important boxes down to fit into a large box. All in all, we probably only had like four boxes in total to move which we can manage.

“Ready to go love?” I smile at her as she holds out her hand for me to take and way too quickly the scene changes from my little Grecian house to the middle of a very wet forest. There’s an almost metallic smell from the fresh rain mixed with the familiar salt from the ocean nearby. Taking a deep breath, I let the atmosphere settle into my harmony and started to feel at home already in this new place. Being too wrapped up as my magic adjusted to the environment, I was startled by my aunt speaking behind me making me almost drop the boxes I was holding.

“Ready to create your new house?” _sigh._

“Absolutely!” With that, the three of us quickly got to work and created what looked like an enormous greenhouse than an actual house, but it still had the bedrooms and bathrooms closed for privacy. The rest was just an open floor plan with more windows than it had walls. Once we had finished, I set the boxes down and hugged my mother and my aunt.

“Thank you both so much! It’s perfect!” I was truly excited to start living in this new place.

“Of course, love. I do have to get going and I’m sorry I can’t stay longer but duty calls unfortunately.” I just smiled at her.

“I’ll be fine, Mother. Aunt Selene probably has people that I need to meet anyways, right?” By now, I knew the routine and I was always grateful for the time that I did get to spend with her.

“Of course. Today is your introduction to the tribal Chief and the pack Alpha.” _Oh, wonderful. Territorial men already._ “I see that look missy, and the chief has promised to keep the boy in line.” I rolled my eyes doubtful of the validity of that promise.

“You know I’ll only behave according to how this Alpha treats us, but any disrespect will be met in kind.” With one final hug my mother poofed off and Selene led me through the forest to a deep river. On the other side was an older man in a wheelchair and a boy in only cut-off jean shorts. This should be interesting. Aunt Selene took the lead on this luckily and jumped us across.

“It is nice to finally meet another of Ephraim’s descendants and this young one must be from Levi’s bloodline. It is nice to meet you both.” They both looked a little surprised by my aunt.

“I’m Billy Black and this is Sam Uley, Alpha of the La Push pack. And who are you two?” He reached his hand out and I gladly took it while Aunt Selene greeted the Alpha.

“I’m Helena and this is my Aunt Selene, who you would know as the mother of all shifters. If you and the pack are anything like Ephraim was, then I’m sure we will get along just fine.” That really caught his attention.

“You both knew him? Forgive me, but neither of you look much more than twenty” My aunt and I both laughed at Billy's unasked question.

“We knew him very well. As for how, well that is a rather long story. But back to the topic at hand, my niece here is going to be staying here, a few yards in that direction,” She gestured back over the river. “and I just wanted to ensure that she wasn’t harmed while she is here or passing through to the sea when needed.” I maintained the stare of Alpha, who looked rather irritated about the whole situation.

“And how can we trust either of you? You don’t even smell human!” _And there’s the territorial shit coming up._

“Now listen here pup, you clearly don’t know a thing about your pack's deep history, and I will only let that tone slide once. Now calm that anger down or that little imprint ability will get turned off for a while.” One thing was for sure, Selene could be scary when she wanted to be.

“For the record, and for the sake of clarity, I don’t smell human because I’m not human. Not fully anyway. I’m a half-blood. Daughter of the Greek goddess Hecate and a mortal father that she doesn’t like to talk about. Mother is the goddess of magic, witchcraft, and spirits.” I smirked as mister macho’s jaw dropped at my confession.

“So you’re a witch then?” I rolled my eyes at his question.

“In a vast understatement, yes. But my craft is more focused on healing and the earth. The only hexes or curses I ever use are reserved for enemies that are threatening my life. And like my mother, I also can commune with the spirits should the situation demand it. But, it is a very draining process that often just ends in riddles.”

“How old are you then?” _Wow…_

“It’s considered rude to ask a lady her age. But I am three hundred and forty-eight, give or take a year or two. Record-keeping wasn’t as good back then. My mother granted me immortality on my twenty-second birthday, and I haven’t aged since.” I was a little proud of that fact.

“Then as a peace offering, we are hosting a bonfire tonight in honor of our three newest members. It’s fairly laid back since it is just a telling of our tribe’s history and then we just hang around and chill. It would be a mutual setting to introduce you to the rest of the pack, so we can prevent any issues in the future.” I glanced to my aunt, a little weary of the offer but she nodded her head once in encouragement.

“That sounds lovely. What time and should I meet someone here or just show up? And what should I bring with me?” _It is rude to show up empty-handed after all._

“Here would be good. Your house is in Cullen territory, so we can’t cross the river. Try to be here around six-thirty and either I or my beta Jared Cameron will be here to escort you. Feel free to bring anything you want, none of us are picky since we have to eat so much.” I simply nodded.

“Then I will be here at six-thirty sharp. You may want to fair warn your pack though, I tend to just use my magic without really thinking about it since I live -” My voice cracked on the end and Selene laid a hand on my shoulder in support as I composed myself quickly. “It was nice to meet you both but I need to go and get unpacked so I can make something.” We shook hands again and with a wave of my hand, stones from the river floated up to create a bridge for us instead of Selene jumping back over. Once our feet hit solid ground again, I snapped and let the stones fall back down and we left to head back to my house.

Selene had to leave shortly after we got done with unpacking the main box and resizing the shrunken ones, but she did promise to come back tomorrow to introduce me to the coven. I let the magic do the heavy lifting and set about arranging and consecrating my new space before I set about making a large batch of cookies from scratch.

As they cooled, I decided to have a quick shower to calm a bit of my nerves. Once I dried off, I slipped on a simple jean dress and braided my hair to keep it out of the way. After popping the cookies into a container and shrinking it down and dropping it in my bag, I locked up the house with a simple spell and walked barefoot back to the river.

This should make for an interesting night.


	2. Chapter 2

Once the little river was in sight, I brought the stone bridge back up and walked to the waiting wolf.

"You seem a little small to be the Alpha which makes you Jared, correct?" The dark woody brown wolf nodded its head before he laid down. I was a little confused by this gesture.

"I know your pack shares a mind-link; may I create a temporary one so I can better understand?" There was a brief flash of hesitation before he nodded. I quickly closed my eyes and focused on the invisible ties before replicating the energy.

"Can you hear me?" I tried to test the link to make sure it was stable.

_"This is really weird but yes. Climb on, it's quicker if I run us there. And yes, I'm Jared. It's Helena, right?"_ I followed his suggestion and he shot off like the hounds of hell were after us.

"Yes, but please just call me Lena. So I'm just curious, how many are in your pack?" With the wind blowing through my hair, I can see why humans love the contraptions called motorcycles.

_"Well Lena, there are eight of us right now. We are hoping that none of the other kids end up having to phase though."_ Fairly large pack for such a small area.

"And how many of you have imprints so far?" There was a brief pause in the link like he was having to go through a mental list before answering.

_"So far, it is just Sam and me. So two."_ At least I always carry multiple of the pendants.

"Are they attending tonight as well?" I could see a break in the trees coming up and knew that we were getting close.

_"Yeah, but what's with all the questions?"_ Oops?

"You'll see later." With that, we broke the tree line, and I severed the link as I jumped down. The group seemed a little hesitant that I was there until Sam and Billy called me over while Jared trotted back into the woods, presumably to phase back. _We never could figure out how to fix that little clothing issue._

"Helena, right on time. I would like to introduce you to our two other council members, Sue Clearwater and Quil Attera III. Sue and Quil, this is Helena. She is the half-blood I told you was invited." The woman, Sue, pulled me in for a hug instead of a handshake and Quil just looked me up and down before walking away.

"Don't mind him. He isn't much of a people person." I just nodded my in understanding since I wasn't usually one either. I quickly reached into my bag and pulled out the container and snapped my fingers to return it to its normal size.

"Where can I put this?" Instead of an answer, Sue led me to a long table where two younger girls were setting up.

"Emily, Kim, this is Helena. Helena meet Emily and Kim." They eyed each other before shaking my hand.

"I brought cookies, where should I set them?" I lifted the container and that seemed to ease their nerves a little as we got to talking after Sue went back to where another girl was, but she had the same tattoo as the boys did. _A single female wolf?_ I brushed the thought aside for the time being.

"So Sam mentioned that you were a witch?" Emily was hesitant in that question and I could feel several of the others' eyes on me.

"Technically yes. I'm a half goddess whose mother is the goddess of magic and witchcraft, so by association yes I am a practicing witch. But I use my magic for things like healings instead of the darker magic that seems to always be associated with witches in this country." They seemed a little impressed with my statement.

"That's actually kind of cool." Kim chimed in for the first time.

"Thanks. So who do you to claim out of this bunch?" I tried to tease a little at the guys roughhousing around in the dirt.

"That's definitely one way to word it. I'm with Sam, and Kim here is with Jared." _So Mrs. Alpha and Mrs. Beta, good to know._

"I have something for you both later if there is time to do so properly. It is a bit of a tradition that I had created a few generations between Taha Aki and Ephraim. But I'm fairly sure that it wasn't made a part of the histories that are told to the pack now."

"We should have time. I'll interrupt Billy if I have to. I think either he or Sam mentioned that you personally knew Ephraim? What was he like?" They both were rather curious and I'm a bit surprised that they were the ones asking me.

"I met him when he was very young so he may have changed later in life, but the man I knew was kind and loved his people. He had a real stubborn streak that never seemed to go away and was usually a little misplaced at times. But he and his imprint both were very welcoming to my aunt and I all those years ago. He was a good friend and I do so miss them both." Before they could say anything, Sam pulled our attention away.

"Everything set?" Emily smiled and nodded before she and Kim signaled the other humans to grab a plate. Once they were out of the way, the rest stampeded the table, and I followed the girls to where the fire was already going strong. As we sat down, I pulled a couple of apples from my bag and threw them into the base of the large fire as I said a prayer.

"What was that for?" Both girls looked puzzled by my actions.

"It is customary for children of the gods to give an offering to their godly parents at every meal. That was for my mother, to honor and thank her for the life and power she has graciously given me. It is an old custom that has unfortunately died out over the years as Christianity became the predominant religion." They didn't say a word but nodded their heads in understanding. We just sat in silence as they ate, and I drank from a bottle of ambrosia-laced wine I had brought. As the pack filled in around us, Billy called for our attention before starting the histories.  
  


All that I could think was, _how did Ephraim manage to twist their history so much against their siblings?_  
  


Once he had finished their caution against the Cullens with a pointed glance at a girl I didn't notice had arrived, Emily spoke up for me.

"Lena here has a little piece of our tribal pack history that she would like to share with us if that is okay with our elders?" They looked a little shocked but allowed me the room. I nodded my head in thanks before standing and walking to the very edge of the fire and removing two of the amethyst pendants from my neck.

"Emily, Kim would you join me please on my left side?" They smiled as they did, and I addressed the group.

"This is a very old tradition that I started at the request of my aunt. It was created to help prevent history from repeating itself, to prevent another _Third Wife_ , and to protect all future imprints. Due to not having an active wolf gene since Ephraim, I have not been called on to perform the ritual and as evident tonight it was not passed on." I paused to pull two other small bottles out of my and a small bowl.

"The whispers of my magic are very much true and while some may find the notion of the unknown to be a tad unnerving, let me reassure you here tonight that I mean no harm and only use my magic for good." I dumped a vial of premeasured crushed amethyst and added a small amount of ceremonial oil to turn it into a paste before speaking again.

"Amethyst has long been used by witches for its protective properties. When crushed and added to spell work, it amplifies that spell." I leaned down and reached into the still-burning fire and gathered some of the ash then added it to the paste before pulling out an amethyst athame and slicing my palm, adding my blood as the binding for the spell.

"Are you both ready?" They nodded and I started my ritual.

_"On this night,_

_I invoke the powers of fire to protect Emily_

_From all that would harm her,_

_whether physically, mentally, emotionally,_

_or spiritually._

_By my mother, Hecate, whose power I yield,_

_let none break what I have sealed."_

I smudged the paste in a star on her chest as the flames grew behind me. I turned to Kim and repeated the spell for her and smudging the star on her chest as well before setting down the bowl and picking up the two pendants. I returned to the fire as I wrapped the chains around my hand and holding them over the fire to cleanse them before starting the second half of the ritual.

_"I give you, pendants, the power to protect._

_Protect from harm._

_Protect from illness._

_Protect from injury._

_Protect from pain and suffering._

_Protect from anything or anyone who wishes ill upon your keepers._

_As I command, so shall it be."_

As I placed the first pendant over Emily's head, I explained their purpose. "These pendants and the crushed amethyst in the paste were from the same stone as the ring I wear. Should either of you ever be in danger, with or without your imprint around, your necklace will call out for me and I will always be there to prevent or end the threat." I moved to put the pendant over Kim as I continued.

"When the time comes for the next generation, the protection will pass along to your children until they are of age. As a mother who has lost her own, I swear to you that you will not feel the pain that I live with. This ritual is for every imprint that is a part of this pack and when they are found, they will receive the same as Emily and Kim." I walked back to the fire for a third time and pulled a smudge bundle from my bag and lit it before blowing it out to a low smoke. As I walked the circle clockwise I gave one last invocation, spending a little more time near the unknown girl who was giving off all kinds of negative vibes.

_"In this night and in this hour,_

_I call upon the sacred power._

_Bless and protect those who are here._

_From harm or misdeed,_

_Protect thee."_

I heard several gasps as I made my way back into the circle and closed out the ritual.

_"The powers of fire, I thank you for your_

_strength and aid tonight._

_Goddess Hecate, I thank you for_

_your power and blessings here tonight."_

I blew out the last of the bundle and collected my items back into my bag before joining where the girls and I sat before. Quil gave a few more closing words and we were left to our own whims. I made myself useful and joined the others in cleaning up what was left of the food table.

"So what was with you staying around Bella longer on the last part?" So that's her name, Bella!

"I was just getting some really strange and negative vibes coming from her. Almost like there was something that she needed more from the ritual." They didn't really question my explanation but gestured to Bella's approaching figure.

"Hey Bella, this is Kim and Lena. Kim, Lena, this is Bella." Before I could even say anything, Kim jumped first.

"So you're the _vampire girl_ that I've been hearing about. Nice to put a name to a face." The tone in her voice was a little harsher than the teasing implied but either Bella didn't notice, or she didn't care.

"Lena, could I talk to you in private?" I looked to Emily and she gestured that they had clean-up covered so I followed Bella as she walked back to a rusty orange truck. "Would you mind if I asked you some questions?"

"Sure. What would you like to ask?" I noticed her fidgeting with the hem of her shirt before she spoke.

"Why did you seemed to pay more attention to me in your last spell? Not that I'm not grateful or anything, I'm simply curious since we hadn't even been introduced yet." I smiled softly at her before I answered.

"I felt drawn to you honestly. You have a lot of negative energy that surrounds you and it caused some motherly concern. I apologize if I made you feel uncomfortable." _Did I overstep?_

"I wasn't uncomfortable. It actually made me feel like a weight has been lifted. I've had this weird feeling lately, like something bad is going to happen, and I just don't know what yet. Does that make sense?" _More than you know child._

"How about this, I can give you my address and you can swing by either tomorrow or the day after and I'll see what I can do to help you with this feeling. Does that sound good?" I was a bit surprised when she threw her arms around me, but I hugged her back. I'm guessing that there isn't much of a motherly figure in her life.

"Thank you, that would be amazing!" She really did sound relieved.

"No problem at all, but I need to say my goodbyes and get home. I'm meeting the area coven tomorrow and I want to get enough sleep." She got really excited about that.

"Then I'll see you tomorrow. The coven is the Cullens since they are the only ones in the area. Do you want a ride home?" I shook my head but thanked her anyways before I made my rounds and headed home for the night.  
  
  
  


Looks like I'll know one person tomorrow besides Selene, and that thought alone had me feeling more confident for the day.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mentions of abuse/abusive relationship. Nothing in detail but it is mentioned very briefly.

The next morning, I had some soft music playing while I was preparing my bag and waiting on my aunt to arrive. She was supposed to be here ten minutes ago, but heaven knows Selene is not one for punctuality. By the twenty-minute mark, I settled for wandering to the river again and hoping that one of the wolves could keep me company or at least point me in the right direction. I grabbed a pair of flats for later and walked through the damp forest barefoot and enjoyed the connectivity to nature that I felt from the unobstructed contact. 

By the time I made the short walk to the river, an additional ten minutes had passed and I was starting to question if she was even showing up at all. With a sigh, I snapped the stone bridge into place and sat down with my legs over the side of it, and pulled a small sketchbook from my bag before setting about drawing the beautiful scene in front of me. The slowly moving river was still crystal clear despite the ever-present mud that falls in. The brilliant emeralds that only wet leaves seem to hold. A small doe that was drinking further upstream seemed to be unbothered by my presence until something rustled the leaves and startled the creature before a blur chased after it.

_Wait, blur?_

What would a vampire have with an animal? I quickly packed my things up and tried to hurriedly follow in the direction that I had seen the blur move to. Luckily, I didn't have to travel too far before I came across a scene that I haven't witnessed since Ephraim made a treaty with a man named Carlisle. But this man in front of me didn't have the familiar blonde hair. Instead, he had dark bronze-colored hair that almost had a tinge of red in the natural light. I stayed as far back as I possibly could while keeping him in my line of sight. I silently observed his feeding on the poor creature before he just dumped the body and sped off.

_Sloppy and one of the weird ones? Why does Selene always insist on sending me after the weird ones? For once, can I please just get one that only needs to be reminded of their duty, and then I leave?_

I cleaned up the now-dead animal and gave it a proper burial and returned its spirit to the Earth before walking off after the vampire again. As I came upon a house that was grander than my own, I heard the familiar pop behind me and faced my aunt with a scowl.

"Glad to see you didn't forget after all." She just rolled her eyes at me playfully before she pulled me towards the house and knocking on the door. We were greeted by Carlisle, who seemed both surprised and confused to see _us_ standing on his doorstep and Bella who quickly tackled me in a hug which seemed to surprise my aunt and Carlisle.

"Forgive me for asking this, but are you two by any chance related to a Selene and or Helena?" My aunt shared my smirk before she answered his question.

"Took you long enough. I'm honestly surprised though that that wasn't the first thing you said, Carlisle. And to answer that question, no we aren't related to them. We _are_ them. The same Selene and Helena that you met with Ephraim Black and Levi Uley." He unnecessarily coughed and I laughed a little as he tried to regain his composure.

"I apologize. Please come in, my family is upstairs." I hung back with Bella as Selene pulled Carlisle into a conversation that I really just didn't care about. Instead, Bella animatedly spoke about the Cullen "children" and how she found out about them without having to be told and that she was dating the one named Edward. While she went on, I noticed her pulling me in the direction of what smelled like the kitchen.

"Bella, lunch is almost ready. Who's this?" I lightly chuckled as she tried to fain a lack of supernatural hearing.

"Esme, this is Helena. The woman I told you about from last night. Helena, this is Esme. She is the mother figure for the coven." I extended a hand to her but much like Bella, she also pulled me in for a hug. _Must be a_ them _thing._

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Helena. Would you like something to eat while we wait for the rest of the family to join us?" She is definitely maternal, I'll give her that, but there is something a little _off_ that doesn't sit well with me. I did my best to push the feeling back a bit before I spoke.

"I'm fine but thank you for the offer." She smiled a little too much at me and I found it a little unsettling. Bella shook her head no as well before pulling me away again but this time to their deck for a tiny sense of privacy.

"So you really met Carlisle before? What was that like?" I chuckled at her eagerness and willingness to ask questions and talk with me.

"A long time ago, yes. As for what it was like, I was originally called to perform the rituals that you witnessed last night but I got stuck dealing with yet another vampire versus shifter conflict. It was more annoying than anything honestly. Ephraim had a bit of stubbornness in him that rivaled even my uncle's. But he was a good friend and I still miss him sometimes. While we've got some time to burn, I've brought my cards with me if you want to try to dive into this concern of yours." It has been so long since I have seen someone light up the way that Bella does when it comes to magic.

"Please? Could you maybe teach me a little as you do?" The eagerness of a child that I have so greatly missed. She reminds me of Jane Ann when I taught her. I pulled out a tarot deck and set it on the table between us.

"I would be honored. I will guide you through a self-reading and help you learn to understand what they are telling you in their own way. The first step is to relax your body and your mind. Try to let everything fall away from you as you take deep breathes, in and out. Close your eyes if it will help and nod when you are ready to continue." As I watched her roll her shoulders a few times, I could see her visibly releasing the tension in her body. She took a few deeper and more controlled breaths before nodding her head but keeping her eyes closed.

"Go ahead and open your eyes. Now take the deck and shuffle it while thinking of the question you want answered. But do not shuffle the deck as you would for playing cards, instead treat them with care and respect. Once you feel happy with the shuffle, cut the deck into three stacks. There is no need to count them." She never said a word as she mixed the cards from the middle of the deck outwards three times then made the three stacks before looking back at me.

"Now before we flip the cards, what is the question you are wanting an answer for? If you don't wish to speak it aloud, I have a pen and pad for you to write it on." Bella paused for a moment before she answered.

"I would prefer to write it down." I gave her a reassuring smile and as she took the pen and wrote the question before handing it to me. _How can I get out of an abusive relationship?_ I quickly schooled my emotions and handed her back the paper.

"Go ahead and flip the first card on your left. In reading like this, your first card will represent the situation." The card she turned showed The Seven of Cups, which reflected her question. "The Seven of Cups usually represents one of three things; the first being too many choices, the second is commitment issues, and the third being what you asked." She nodded her head as she made a note on the page with the question.

"Turn the middle card next. This will represent the obstacle you are facing." My spirit ached for her as she turned up The Seven of Swords. "The Seven of Swords will stand for one of five things: theft, betrayal, dishonesty, running away, or divorce/affair. Given your question, there are two options that stick out right now, but we will come back to that. Now for the third card. This one is for advice on the situation." I should have expected the final card, but I still paled as the skeleton on the card stared back at us.

"What does this one mean?" I swallowed thickly as I tried to regain my composure.

"This card has a few meanings. Big changes, endings, rebirth, and let go & move on. This card brings clarity to the second." She looked a little confused.

"How so?" I pushed my emotions down for the minute and tried to recenter myself before answering her.

"Tarot is less about the direct meanings of the individual cards and more about the story that they are telling us. What they are telling us here is that there was a betrayal of your trust, possibly some dishonesty, and maybe an affair where the relationship you have has turned from what it should be. They are speaking to you and telling you that it may be time to let go and move on from the relationship." The more I explained, the more her armor started to crack and by the end, it had shattered completely as she broke down in front of me. The mother in me broke for her as I pulled her crying form into my arms and rocked her gently.

"How can I even begin to move on when _he -_ " As her voice cracked, I shushed her.

"We can worry about that in a bit. Right now, just let out those emotions that you have been forced to bottle up. Let them free and find peace as you let your worries go with them." I was thankful that I had done a small privacy spell before we started and as her sobs turned into almost wailing, I shushed her as I would a distressed child and alternated muttering _everything is going to be ok_ and _it's ok dear, no one will hurt you anymore_. Eventually, she calmed down and I pulled some tissues out of my bag to give her as she dried her eyes.

"I'm sorry you had to deal with all of that. I'm a mess." She laughed a little at herself to try to calm herself down more.

"Isabella, there is nothing to be sorry or ashamed or embarrassed by. Everyone has their breaking point, and I was honored to be able to help you through yours. I apologize if I over-step here, but was _he_ the only one that was participating? Was it more physical, emotional, mental, or some combination?" She took a few shaky deep breaths before she answered.

"Some of all three. None of the others ever participated, but Rosalie, Jasper, and Emmett were the only ones to try to help me when they could. _He_ caught on and has been actively trying to separate me from pretty much everyone since my birthday. The bonfire yesterday only happened because Jake basically stole me from school. Being with the pack is the only time I feel safe anymore since _he_ can't cross without breaking the treaty. Wait, what if we try to get Sam and Carlisle to make your property a neutral ground with only them being able to enter the property." This girl is a genius!

"Technically Selene and I both can over-rule their decision so if this is something that can help you be more comfortable then let's do it. Do you think you are ready to head back inside while I handle a few things?" She glanced hesitantly at the door and I placed a hand on her shoulder. "You don't have to if you don't want to dear, but you are not going in alone. No one will hurt you ever again if I have anything to say about it, and with gods and goddesses as my family, you are now in my protection." She smiled at that and told my hand as I walked towards the door before I paused.

"Something wrong?" I shook my head and removed another of the amethyst pendants and placed it over her neck.

"Just in case. It hasn't been tuned to you specifically yet, but it will still work for protection from harm."

I watched her touch the pendant before she opened the door. As we slowly went in, I sent a mental message to Selene about the situation and while she is just as protective as I am, one of her children is the cause of her pain. One thing was for certain though, the look we shared told me that we were on the same page.  
  


This one will pay for what he has done.


	4. Chapter 4

No sooner than we had entered the living room, I felt Bella tense up behind me as she saw made eye contact with the same vampire that I had observed earlier. He wore a disturbing smile as he looked over Bella's figure and his eyes flicked dangerously as I pulled her behind me.

"Bella, come here." While his tone was a forced sort of endearing, the phrasing was nothing short of an order. I glared at him as Bella tried to move from behind me before I stopped her.

"Selene, can you stay with Isabella while I talk to this one outside?" I never once took my gaze off of him and I didn't move until Selene had a hand on Bella. I gave her hand a squeeze before letting go and hauling his vampire ass outside.

"You have exactly five seconds to explain yourself before I send your sparkly ass straight to Hades." I was positively fuming at this point.

"Our souls are damned when we become this, so I just stopped acting any different." _Was that his only defense?_ He shrugged his shoulders and I had to refrain from calling Hades right then and there.

"What makes you say that you don't have a soul, let alone a damned one?" I questioned his answer.

"Because God has forsaken us when we become this." I rolled my eyes at his dramatics when I heard the distinct poof behind me and his jaw-dropping confirmed it as well.

"That _God_ that you speak of didn't damn you. Hate to be the one to break it to you, actually, I'm really not, but that _God_ you think so highly of doesn't actually exist. Zeus and Apollo made a bet many eons ago that Apollo couldn't trick the mortals into believing a new religion, which is what you call _Christianity_. What neither of them ever thought was possible, turned into their worst mistake yet. The religion spread like wildfire and caused us to have to hide our existence." I laughed as his eyes went wider with each word that she spoke.

"Mother, what a pleasant surprise. I didn't expect you to be back so soon." I gave her a hug but before she could say anything else, he spoke as his brain tried to comprehend what he had been told.

"But that would... And... Just..." He struggled to form a coherent sentence.

"I think you broke his little mortal brain." She chuckled and I almost missed the sound of a door closing behind us.

"What's going on out he -" Carlisle paused as he gaped at my mother. " _Catherine?_ How are you even still alive?" That really caught my attention. Mother has gone by many different names in the past, but the horrified look on her face alarmed me.

"Mother, how do you know Carlisle?" That seemed to break both of them out of their little bubble.

"Why am I not surprised that the child is one of yours? How have you been Carlisle?" _Wait, what?_

"Don't! You do not get to show up here after three hundred and fifty years when I spent all that time thinking that you had died. I want an explanation, now Catherine!" _Ok, just how well did they know each other?_

"Can we not do this right now?" I huffed as I tried to interject.

"Mother, why is he calling you Catherine? You haven't used that name since I was little." Carlisle threw me a confused look and I watched behind him as Selene and Bella came out behind him as Edward went back inside. Bella was quick to return to my side and I stood there as my mother and Carlisle argued back and forth before my mother had had enough.

"MY NAME ISN'T CATHERINE!" My jaw dropped as I looked at her furious expression. My mother was never one to raise her voice, so I knew that somewhere he had crossed a line.

"Just another thing you've lied about. Why did you leave?" Carlisle was starting to sound more desperate than angry at this point and I was more confused than ever.

"Yes I lied about my name, but you wouldn't have believed me had I told you. You were a pastor's son for Zeus' sake!" _Well, that explains a lot._

"Then what is your real name? Or do you still not trust me enough?" As my mother sighed heavily, Esme made her appearance.

"Everything okay out here?" She asked while sizing my mother up.

"And you are?" _Really mother?_

"I'm his wife, who are you?" And just like that, I knew that one word had shut her down.

"I'm no one. I was just leaving. Helena, Nyx sends her regards and wants you to come visit home soon." _Shit._ I had to stop her before she left.

"Mother, can you just give the man an explanation? I will call Ares and Apollo if I have to, and you know I will." She tried to level me with a glare but if Ares doesn't scare me, then how could she?

"Fine. I hate when you use my brothers against me." Mother huffed out at me.

"I know." I smiled a little smugly at her.

"My name is Hecate, the Greek goddess of magic, witchcraft, and spirits." She was still holding something back.

"Why did you choose to leave?" He was still digging for that answer and Esme looked less than pleased.

"I left because I had no choice! If I had stayed, it would have ruined you." _Huh?_

"What ruined me was you disappearing without a trace!" Esme looked rather pissed off with him at that confession.

"Carlisle, I left because I was pregnant." She spoke softly and that one word silenced us all, but something was sticking out at me.

"What year were you turned?" His eyes snapped to me.

"Pardon?" I knew he didn't have the information that I did, but pieces were starting to fall into place.

"What year were you turned?" I repeated slower as I redid the math in my head.

"Sixteen sixty-three. Two years after you left." One look to my mother and I knew I had figured it out.

"Mother, tell me I'm wrong. Please tell me that it isn't true." As she hung her head, tears welled up in my eyes and I turned to my aunt.

"Did you know? Have you known this whole time?" She slowly nodded her head and I turned back to where Carlisle stood even more confused than before.

"What am I missing here?" I tried my best to wipe the tears away as Bella took my hand. She figured it out.

"I was born in the year sixteen sixty-one." And that one piece of information seemed to solidify whatever theory that he had come up with.

"You knew I wanted children and you kept her from me all this time?" He sounded close to crying himself. Before my mother could even say a thing in her defense, Esme snapped.

"Leave! Take your bastard child and leave!" I just shot a look to Selene and she sighed before putting Esme to sleep.

"What did you do to her?!" I'm not entirely sure if he is actually upset from the news or if he is just concerned for his wife.

"She is only sleeping. Be glad that Helena didn't call one of our other siblings because they are much less forgiving to those who disrespect her. You may be her father by blood, but Ares has always been her father figure and he is very protective of her." He looked a little shocked as he glanced at me and I just shrugged. It was the truth and there was no point in denying it. With all the tension in the air, if Bella hadn't have turned I wouldn't have noticed that my uncle had joined us.

"Looks like I missed the best part." And just like that, I knew things were going to be okay.

"Uncle!" I ran and embraced him. "What are you doing here?"

"Can't I pop in to visit my little warrior without having to have a reason?" I shot him a look and he cracked a smirk. "Oh alright, I come bearing good news. Sister, you and Nyx can finally rest easy." Aunt Selene caught on before I did.

"Did you really -" She trailed off, unable to finish her question and it finally sunk in.

"After all this time?" I know the shock must have been visible on my face because Bella looked at me confused.

"Yes, love. Your twins have finally been found. Their mental blocks finally faded enough that we could track them." If it hadn't been for Bella and Ares, I would have collapsed as my legs gave out. I had almost forgotten that Carlisle was even still here until he spoke.

"You have children?" I only nodded before turning back to Ares.

"Where are they? How are they even alive if their immortality wasn't triggered?" Something in his expression shifted as he looked up at Selene.

"They're in Volterra, Italy." I looked at my aunt confused as she broke down.

"Brother, please tell me it isn't true. There has to be some mistake." The realization struck me to my core as I remembered the importance of the city.

"When? How long have they -" I couldn't get the question out as my heart broke for my children.

"The family they had been hidden with feared their growing power and had them tried as witches. The village they had moved to still used the archaic practice of burning at that time. They were saved by a man named Aro, who turned them to save their lives. I'm so sorry Helena, they were only sixteen at the time..." He trailed off and I completely lost it as he pulled me into his arms. The silent pain I felt rushed out of me, but one voice brought me back to reality for a moment."

"Volterra, Aro, twins? Were their names Jane and Alec by chance?" We all stared at him in shock.

"Those were their nicknames. Where did you hear those names?" I was desperate for any information that I could get my hands on at this point.

"I stayed with the Volturi for a few decades and Jane and Alec are members of their elite guard due to their gifts." _Like powers?_ I look at my aunt and she nodded her head.

"What are their gifts? They were quite talented as humans." He shook his head a bit before speaking.

"Jane is gifted with pain-inducement. She can inflict the worst pain with a single look." _She takes after her father then. He was a cruel man, and I was so happy on the day that Hades personally came to claim him._ "Alec is the opposite. He is gifted with sensory deprivation in the form of a black mist." _At least one of them takes after me._ I smiled softly as I tried to picture what they would look like now. They were only ten the last time that I laid eyes on them.  
  


Looks like I'm leaving here sooner than I thought.

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After Ares left, Mother and Aunt Selene had to go as well. I said my goodbyes and Bella and I walked back to my house in silence. Once we had gotten inside I collapsed on one of the couches and Bella took the other as I used my magic to bring me a black tea and Bella a hot chocolate since she doesn't like tea. We sat in comfortable silence while we drank. We were both too emotionally exhausted right now to do much of anything at the moment. Just as my eyes started to drift closed, my ring started to heat up and pulsed making me quickly jump up.

"Bella, stay here and don't open the doors. I'm going to spell them so they won't open from the outside, but you can't open them. I need to get to the Rez. There's an emergency and I don't know what I'm walking into and I need you to be safe." She nodded her head and with that, I grabbed my emergency bag and ran as fast as my legs could carry me to where the danger was. But I was not prepared for the sight that I was met with.

A huge black wolf was whimpering a few feet away from a bloodied Emily, who was unconscious on the ground. I quickly made the mind-link to the distraught Alpha.

_"Sam, what happened? I can't help her until I know the full story."_ As I tried my best to assess the injuries, I noticed that the blood was from three large claw marks on the side of her face that ran from her temple and down to her lip. I sighed as I realized that no matter how much magic and healing I put into the wound there would still be a scar left behind.

_"I didn't mean to... We were arguing and the next thing I knew was that Em was on the ground and you ran through the trees."_ Wolves and their stupid tempers, I swear.

_"Call for the others, I need another set of hands and you are in no state to try to assist in what I need to do."_ I cringed a bit as he let out a pain-filled howl and I set about cleaning up some of the blood to get a better look at the extent of her wounds. The claws just barely managed to miss her eye, but her lip will more than likely be left in a permanent half-frown. The thundering of the pack grew closer and I pushed the mink-link to include the entire pack.

_"No time for questions right now. I need a second set of hands so one of you needs to go phase and come back quickly. And just a warning, I will be calling for my uncle's help as well. The rest of you, keep him back so we can work."_ A smokey grey wolf ran back into the tree line and emerged a minute later in jean shorts.

"What do you need me to do?" At least he seems to know how to act.

"Help me turn her on her back." As we did so, I called out "Uncle Apollo, I need your assistance!" and I breathed a sigh of relief at the pop behind me.

"Lena, why did you -" He paused as he took in the scene. "Which one of them did this?" _He was furious._

"It doesn't matter. It happened and we can't change that. She will need a blood transfusion, but I managed to stabilize her enough to deal with the worst of it here. One of their tribal elders is a nurse, so she can help with the blood, but she needs to be stable enough to be moved." Apollo was quick to jump in as we worked to finish doing what we could.

"And who is he?" I rolled my eyes at him, but I honestly didn't know the kid's name either.

"Paul Lahote. Third-in-command of the pack. I was the only one with any sort of medical knowledge." He spoke quickly while assisting with whatever we were directing him, and we soon got her stabilized enough to move. Her wounds were closed, but there was scarring due to the depth of the injury, and we got most of the blood washed off of her.

"Take her quickly. She needs more blood in her system and soon. I'll be there as quick as I can." Paul nodded and took off running with her as the rest of the pack, except for Sam and Jared, followed after him. My uncle quickly said a short goodbye before vanishing and leaving me with a stressed-out Alpha and a confused Beta.

This is going to be a long day.


	5. Chapter 5

I sighed as I packed my things back into the bag while I spoke.

"Go phase back and so help me, if I have to track you down because you decided to bolt, then you will really see why I don't make a good enemy." The only sound was their retreating paw-falls and the occasional bird or two. While they were taking their sweet time, I laid back on the ground and closed my eyes as I breathed in the smell of the damp forest and the slight metallic of blood that lingered. Just as I was starting to get concerned, a twig snapping alerted me to their return.

"Come sit down." I didn't bother to open my eyes yet and I continued my steady breathing while I spoke. "I can feel your anxiety and distress as I can feel the ground we sit on."

"She's going to hate me now." I sighed and opened my eyes while I sat up.

"She isn't going to hate you. I am positive that that girl doesn't have a hateful bone in her body." I tried to reason with him before Jared attempted to help.

"Look at it this way man, she is still alive at least." I mentally face-palmed at the brazen statement, and Sam paled a little.

"Jared, that isn't helping." I scolded him.

"Sorry." He let his head hang a bit.

"Sam, this is about more than just what happened, isn't it?" I noticed that he kept staring at his hands in horror but there was something else showing in his eyes behind that fear. And Jared being Jared made a second attempt to help the situation.

"Dude, one accident doesn't make you the same as your dad." _Oh for fuck's sake!_ Sam didn't comment but he didn't need to. I saw how he tensed up and I knew that I wasn't going to get anywhere with him while Jared was here.

"Jared, I know you're just trying to help, but you need to go. I can handle this, I'm sure the rest of the pack is looking for a bit of direction right now or if you need a minute you can pick up Bella from my house and take her with you. Just tell her I sent you since I told her not to open the doors." He looked to Sam, who was too lost in his own thoughts, before standing up and walking off in the direction of my house, leaving us alone.

"What's going on in that head of yours?" He jumped a bit when I laid a hand on his arm when he didn't answer.

"Sorry. I'm still trying to process, it all happened so fast and I don't really even know when I had gotten mad enough to phase. Is that normal to not remember the fight, only what happened after?" He truly looked scared of himself right now. I saw him glance over the spot where Emily had been, and I knew I needed to get him away from this.

"Let's just take a walk. The ocean isn't too far from here and it will give you a chance to clear your head." While I spoke, I stood and offered my hand to help him up. He wordless took my hand and we walked in silence to the beach. Once we reached our destination, he opted to sit in the sand and rolled my skirt up a little before walking into the cold waves. I smiled at the familiar tug of the tide and let it pull my stress away as it receded while each wave cleansed the energy before repeating the process.

"Did you know that you can never be in the same ocean twice?" _Maybe a distraction could help._

"How is that possible?" I looked over my shoulder at his confused face.

"Skipping the boring science, my uncle says it's because of the continual ebb and flow of the tide and waves. While the tide strips away the old, the crashing waves carry the new. A bringing of life and the destruction of life. One cannot exist without the other. The must always be a balance." I wobbled a little as the tide pulled a little stronger before it returned to normal.

"I'm still lost." I sighed before I turned to face where he sat.

"Come join me?" Sam hesitantly got up but paused at the edge of the wet sand before finally walking in. "Now close your eyes and just relax. Feel the pull of the tide as it pulls at the sand we stand on, the waves that push the now exposed layer closer to shore. The give and take, a constant exchange of energy." A small smile played at the corners of his mouth as I spoke.

"I understand." _It's working!_

"Now I want you to try something, okay?" I waited until he nodded his head before continuing. "When you feel the pull of the tide, I want you to visualize the negative thoughts and feelings you have being pulled away with it as you exhale. As you feel the waves push against you, allow it to bring you peace as you inhale. Can you do that?" He still had his eyes closed but he nodded his head. It took a few minutes for him to get the hang of it but once he did, the tension slowly left his body. _Good._ He slowly opened his eyes and allowed a soft smile to form.

"Feel better?" He certainly looked more relaxed.

"Loads better. How did you know that would work?" _And there's the question I was waiting for._

"Did you think Ephraim was the only one I was friends with?" I smirked a bit playfully.

"I guess not." He let out a small laugh that reminded me a little of Levi.

"I knew Levi Uley just as well, if not more than I knew Ephraim. He struggled with trying to control his temper and I tried to help him as best as I could, but he was a stubborn man, and he didn't want to listen to the advice of a woman. He swore repeatedly that there was no way I could help him, that was until the day he found out how powerful the spell was on the pendants I gave. He lost it for a split second and almost completely gutted his imprint. The severity of her wounds caused the pendant she wore to immediately pull me to her. I tried everything that I could to save her, but medicine back then wasn't very advanced, and she had lost too much blood. We had almost the exact same conversation in this spot as he finally accepted that he needed help. He was able to fully gain control of the anger within himself and ended up settling down once he stopped phasing." It was a risk to share that story with him, but something told me to share it anyways.

"How did he cope with what he had done?" He stared back out to the horizon while he spoke.

"He didn't. Causing a loved one harm is not something that you _cope_ with. It is something that you have to face head-on and work through. I had to work with Levi almost daily for weeks after because he refused to acknowledge what he had done. The more he tried to run from his emotions, the worse his anger got. Every shifter has two emotions that they will feel the strongest. Anger or Love. The more a wolf lets his anger control him, the further he gets from being able to learn control. Will you let it control you as well or are you ready to learn how to control it?" _Please don't be like Levi. Learn from his mistakes._

"I want to learn to control it. I need to, for her." I smiled at his resolve.

"Then we can start as soon as I get back." _Shit._

"You're leaving already?" _Why did I have to say that now? Dummy._

"My uncle finally found my children after them being missing for three hundred and fifteen years. This is my chance to finally bring my children home." His glare softened to one of understanding.

"When are you leaving?" I thought about it.

"Originally, I was leaving tomorrow but I may just stay until Emily has gotten better." He did not look happy with that answer.

"We can handle Em's recovery, go get your family back." I laughed at that as we headed back to shore where Bella and Jared were waiting for us.

"Any news?" They glanced at each other and I grew concerned.

"Um..." _Why are they hesitating?_

"What happened Bella?" At least she might give me a straight answer.

"Emily is awake." _That can't be all of it._ Jared glanced at Bella again.

"And?" She sighed as I stared at her and smirked as her cheeks turned red.

"Looks like I'll be spending a lot more time over here now." I pulled her in for a hug that left the boys confused since she didn't exactly say what did happen.

"The cards never lie! So who was it?" I was so excited for her!

"Can you two be girly in the car? We need to get going." I pulled her away from the two boys with a giggle.

"Who imprinted on you?" She finally started smiling and laughing a bit now that it was just the two of us.

"I don't think you have met him yet, but his name's Embry. He's a friend of Jake's which how we had met originally. The only reason that the imprint didn't happen sooner was because I had never looked any of them in the eye because _he_ -" She quickly stopped the rest of her sentence and looked around nervously.

"It's alright dear. It will take some getting used to, but you are safe here and now you don't have to see any of them again if you don't want to. Plus, I can now tie the pendant to you specifically since you are now a part of the pack." That made her calm down a bit.

"You're right. At least here, I know that Embry is willing to protect me and I have you." I laughed as she nudged me with her shoulder as we got to the Jeep.

"That you do. Before I forget, since you were there for the news I wanted to let you know that I'm leaving for Italy tomorrow, but I will be coming back here. I just won't know when until I get there." She put an arm around me while we waited for the guys to catch up.

"I figured you would be leaving soon. If it wasn't for the imprint, I would have asked to come with you but -" I held a hand up and stopped her mid-explanation.

"I understand dear. But if you truly want to go then talk to him about it. An imprint is a special bond and with modern technology, you wouldn't be more than a phone call away. Makes sure you come by my house tonight either way so I can get your pendant ready." She nodded her head as we all loaded up and headed out.

The rest of the day, my thoughts ran wild with the prospect of seeing my beloved twins again.

***********************************************************************************************

I was woken up the next morning by a banging on my door. After rolling myself out of my warm bed, I quickly threw open the door to find Bella on my doorstep.

"I talked with Embry like you suggested and he was totally cool with me going with you and my dad okayed it as long as he met you first." Not what I was expecting at eight in the morning, but her excitement was contagious.

"Then I guess I'll go get dressed and we can head out after breakfast. You know where everything is, so make yourself at home." As she set off to the kitchen, I went back to my room and I was glad that I had packed last night and laid out my clothes for the day. After a quick shower, I threw on my clothes and braided my damp hair back. I made a thermos of black tea and we quickly headed out with my bag in tow when I thought of something.

"Bella, how did you get here? I don't even have a trail leading to my house." She smirked at me.

"I asked Billy to call Carlisle and get him to allow one of the wolves to escort me here since I'm an imprint and this is technically Cullen territory. Jake dropped me off and left once you opened the door." I just laughed at that.

"Clever girl. Is your truck at the Black's then?" I was confused when she shook her head.

"I got it parked right at the tree line. All we have to do is walk a straight line." _Well alrighty then._ We laughed and chatted all the way to the rusty orange truck after her shock at my stone bridge over the river wore off. On the drive to her house, she let me gush about my children and even asked questions about them. In no time, she parked in front of a small white house with a local police car parked on the street.

"Come on, this shouldn't take long. He isn't much of a talker, but he just wanted to make sure that I wasn't running off with a guy or something." She laughed a bit as she jogged up the front steps and unlocked the door before yelling that she was back. Bella quickly took my hand and pulled me towards the living room where a gruff-looking man was cleaning a rifle. The sight made me stop dead in my tracks as I tried to not panic at the sudden memories that were brought up.

"Bella?" She turned to me and followed my line of sight before getting her dad to remove the weapon from the room.

"Lena, are you okay? I'm so sorry, I didn't think he would be doing that in the living room of all places. I should have warned you first." She pulled my still-frozen body into a hug and I tried to ground myself and push the memories away.

"I'll be okay. Just some very unpleasant memories regarding the twins' father and guns." She nodded in understanding as her father came back into the room.

"Sorry about that. Name's Charlie and you are?" He held his hand out awkwardly and I could tell that Bella got that from him.

"Helena. It's nice to officially meet you. Bella speaks highly of you." I saw her shoot me a grateful smile as I earned her some parental points. "So you're the one that got her away from the Cullen boy? In that case, have fun on your trip." _That didn't take much._ I laughed as Bella hugged her dad before shoving me towards the front door and out to the truck.

"So where are we parking this since we aren't flying?" I asked her confused.

"Sam's letting me park at his place. Your aunt at taking us correct?" I rolled my eyes at her eagerness.

"Yes, I just have to call for her once we are ready to leave." She nodded excitedly and we talked about magic since she wants to learn more about it. I was happy to answer her questions and just before we crossed over the treaty line, Bella slammed on the brakes. Edward Cullen was standing right in front of us and he blocked us from crossing the line with his car across both lanes of the quiet road.

"Bella, call Embry and stay in the truck until he gets here." She pleadingly looked at me as I got out while she sat frozen in her seat. With a snap of my fingers, I locked the car and walked to where he stood.

"What are you doing Edward?" He tried to growl at me, and I just rolled my eyes.

"I'm here to get _my_ Bella back. She knows she can't go near those mutts. I won't allow her to." _This bitch has lost his fucking mind._ _Aunt Selene forgive me._

"Aunt Persephone!" He looked at me confused until a little poof sounded behind me.

"Where's this one going? Is he trying to be intimidating with that look? It's kind of pathetic." I laughed a little at her jab at him.

"One of your specialties. Domestic abuser." I saw the smirk form on her lips as she looked him over.

"I know just the spot for him too. I take it Selene knows?" I laughed at that.

"She knows what he has done, I'm about to see her in a few minutes so I will inform her then." She gave me a hug before she poofed off with Edward in tow. Luckily, she poofed the car out of our way so we quickly made our way to Sam's. She had barely put the truck in park before one of the guys was out of the house and at her door.

"I was worried sick. Are you okay? Sam said that Helena had it handled and wouldn't let me leave." I smiled as she relaxed into his embrace. He seems like such a sweetheart. As his last statement sunk in, I groaned as I knew I would need to have a little chat with Sam before we left.

"You okay, Lena?" Bella looked a little concerned and I realized I was probably a little too loud about my frustration.

"Yeah. Is Sam inside?" I rubbed my eyes as a headache started to set in after the long morning we've had already.

"Yeah, but he hasn't left Em's side since she got back last night." He warned me, but I didn't bother commenting and just walked away from the pair. I sighed a little as I took in the almost familial atmosphere of the house as some of the guys sat around making jokes and throwing various things, mostly food, at each other. I can only hope that Jane Ann and Alecsander have had the chance to have something like this.

"If you're looking for Sam, up the stairs and it's the first door on the left." Paul, I think, gestured over his shoulder before going back to shoveling food into his mouth. I rolled my eyes before muttering a _thanks_ and finding the room. I knocked lightly on the door and waited before Emily called _come in_.

"Hey, glad to see you're doing okay. I just wanted to see how you were before heading out." I was happy Sam had managed to come around a bit after our talk yesterday, and the sight of him sitting next to his imprint and holding her hand was a beautiful thing to witness.

"Sam told me what happened. Helena, thank you so much for everything. We are lucky to have someone like you as a friend and ally." That really warmed my heart. I haven't really had a lot of friends since immortality makes it a little difficult to stay in one place for very long.

"I'm glad I have been able to help. I wish I could have done more but even magic has its limitations, unfortunately." I rubbed my arm a little as I looked down feeling a little guilty.

"Now enough of that. Where is that smile at? You are getting to see your kids today, that is a reason to celebrate!" I laughed a little at her enthusiasm, but it got caught around the lump in my throat.

"What if they don't remember me yet? Their mental blocks have lasted this long, what if they still don't remember me?" I confessed my fear quietly. I hadn't even meant to, but now that it's been said I can't help but feel scared.

"Everything will work out hun. Just trust the timing and know that this is meant to happen _now_ for a reason." For just a moment, she really reminded me of my Aunt Athena. She always knew just what to say to help me feel a lot better.

"Thank you, Emily, I really needed to hear that." I gave her a gentle hug before pulling back. "Sam, can we have a word in private?" He nodded and kissed Emily's hand before joining me in the hall.

"What's up?" I shot him a look.

"Next time I personally tell an imprint to call, just let him show up. I appreciate your confidence in my skills, but I had Bella call for a reason. She really could have used Embry's support earlier while I dealt with the Cullen boy." He refused to meet my eye while I spoke.

"He told you?" I huffed a bit at him.

"No, he told Bella and I happened to hear. Sam, while I understand your logic for not allowing him to go, please keep in mind that if the roles were reversed you would not want to be kept away from Emily like, okay?" While I was annoyed, I wasn't mad or upset with him, but I did need him to understand that he needed to think about this from the rest of the pack's perspective.

"You're right. We're all going to miss having you around while you're gone. It's only been a couple of days, but you are as much a part of this pack as any of them." I tried to sniff back a couple of tears at his words.

"Speaking of, I should be off. I'll have Bella call before we just pop up. Remember what we talked about yesterday and try it again if you need to." With that. I gave him a hug before heading back downstairs, and after a quick bye to the rest of the pack, I called for Selene while Bella and I grabbed our bags.

"You girls ready?"  
  
  


We both nodded and with that, we were off to Italy.


	6. Chapter 6

I had to steady Bella as we landed in Selene's villa since she hasn't traveled like that before. Aunt Selene stayed long enough to direct us to our rooms for our stay then left us to our devices.  
  


"Sorry about that landing. I forgot that it can be a bit much on the human body." She sat on the bed and tried to steady her breathing while I got her some water.  
  


"I'm fine, that was just a bit of a rush. So are you planning on going to the castle today?" I didn't even have to think about it.  
  


"I'm going as soon as you are feeling better. Did you want to come with me or just take some time to enjoy being here? It is a very beautiful city in the daylight, and you won't have to worry about any vampires wandering around right now either." While she contemplated my offer I watched her walk to the window and sigh.  
  


"I think I'll just wander around if that's ok. This is an important moment for you and your family that should probably be just you three. I'll be back here at dark though, so I will see you then." I smiled at her thoughtfulness as she went and pulled clothes from her bag.

"If you're sure, then have fun. I need to go change myself. A woman only storms a castle once!" _At least in the last two hundred years._

"Then good luck with the dramatic entrance." She gave me a quick hug before I went back into my room and unpacked my things before I settled on a long lilac dress with amethyst and silver jewelry to match it. I didn't bother with shoes at all and just went with what the mortals call _barefoot sandals_ , which is just another piece of jewelry worn on the foot and ankle, in a pretty white lace. Foregoing makeup, I loosely curled my hair and pulled it to one side before examining myself in the mirror. For once I actually looked like my mother in her goddess form though my feature now made more sense after finding out Carlisle was my father.

Now that I knew that my children were here, I changed the spell that I had been using to help me find them within the walls of the castle once I go there. Luckily, Selene keeps a stocked house for me when I'm here. Two sprigs of rosemary for remembrance, a pinch of Cypress for longevity, a shredded yarrow root for contacting relatives, and two tablespoons of chopped Ground Holly for spirit calling. While I prepared the items in a silver bowl, I mentally repeated their names. _Alecsander_ _and Jane Ann._ With a prick on my left finger for blood from the heart, I started the new spell.  
  


_"Powers of the witches rise,_

_Course unseen across the skies,_

_Come to us who call you near,_

_Come to us and settle here._

_Blood of my blood, I call to thee_

_Blood of my blood, guide me to thee."_

Instead of pouring the mix on a map, I dipped a rose quartz pendant into the bowl as I spoke the last two lines. After wiping off the wet mixture, I pulled on the necklace and tucked it under the top of my dress, and set off to find my children.

I'm not leaving this city until they are found.

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_***** _ _**ALEC'S** _ _**POV*** _

_"Blood of my blood, I call to thee_

_Blood of my blood, guide me to thee."_

That's twice in the last week. This strange voice in my head, flashes of a woman's face, then images of my sister and I as kids playing in a field with the woman laughing and trying to catch us, small clips of her telling us a story about gods and goddesses and magic. Then the headache that inevitably follows.

This has been happening twice a year now for the last three hundred and fifteen years, but this year has been different. Normally these issues have stuck to the same two days a year, but this is now the third time this year and the second this week. But this one wasn't normal. No, this time the lines she spoke were different.   
  


I've tried to talk to Jane about these _visions_ , but she has repeatedly said that she didn't want to hear about them after I started theorizing that the woman may have been our mother. Her words were that if our mother had actually cared about us then we wouldn't have been turned by Master Aro. I'm trying to not let her get to me though. Something in my undead soul is telling me that she is the mother I have been wanting and that I will meet her one day.

The only one of the Masters that believes that I'm seeing my human mother is Marcus. Aro has seen the images in my head, but Jane has him wrapped around her little finger, so he sides with her without really vocalizing it. Caius just doesn't care at all. All he does care about is the law and torture, which he does with Jane.

"Alec, are you alright?" I hadn't realized I had slumped against the wall in my pain until Master Marcus spoke to me. At that moment I was happy that we weren't in the middle of a trial. I was about to answer when the throne room doors were thrown open and the woman from my visions strolled in yelling.

_"Where are my children?"_ And she sounded quite mad.

***********************************************************************************************

_***** _ _**HELENA'S** _ _**POV*** _

As soon as I was inside the castle walls, I could feel my pendant start to pull me in the right direction. Some secretary tried to stop me as I got closer to a set of large ornate doors. The pull was the strongest here, so I knew at least one of my children was on the other side. I took a deep breath before throwing open the doors and storming into the room.

"Where are my children?" The three men in front of me stood from their, what looked like, thrones in shock. I guess they don't get many people that make an entrance like that.

"Who are you to come in here and making demands?" The blonde one seethed at me. I didn't even bother responding as looked feverishly around the room before my eyes landed on the young boy in the room. He stared at me in shock before walking over to the raven-haired one in the middle and offered his hand. While neither of them spoke, I took the chance to fully take in the boy.

The dark brown almost black hair looked so similar to my own and I tried to picture him with my son's hazel eyes as his red ones flicked between me and the man. He looked so much like the little boy I had lost all those years ago but what sealed it was when he spoke.

"Master?" The man still didn't speak but he didn't have to.

"Alecsander? Is it really you? Where's your sister? Where's Jane Ann?" That got the man to finally speak as the rest just stared at me.

"How do you know those names?" I really didn't like the way his calculating eyes stared at me. Before I could answer though, the blonde spoke first.

"Enough Aro, she clearly knows too much. Let us end this and get on with the rest of the trials." As he spoke, two figures tried to grab my arms, but I quickly threw them off of me and straightened my dress.

"You're Aro?" I broke out in a huge smile as I ran to embrace the man which stunned him a bit.

"My uncle told me how you saved them. I can't thank you enough! I owe you a great debt for sparing them from that awful village." Just when he started to relax, I felt a little spark where my bare arm touched the skin of his neck. The jolt startled me, and I quickly pulled away.

"Mother?" I finally let the tears fall as I finally hugged my little boy after a long three hundred-something years.

"Oh my sweet Alec, I have missed you so much, I have missed you both so much. We never stopped looking for you sweetheart. I am so sorry that I failed you both all those years ago. Oh, my sweet boy." I cried as I kissed his forehead like I used to do when I would put him to bed all those years ago. I hugged him tight against me and I smiled as I felt my mother, aunt, and uncle's presence in the room with us.

"No offense, but how are you even alive right now? You have a heartbeat." I chuckled a little as I pulled back enough to dry my face a bit.

"That is because I'm not mortal. I wasn't fully mortal when you were born either, but that is a story for a different time. There are some other people from our family that want to see you again if you want. They were the ones that helped me find you after all this time." Alec looked at me confused as Aro spoke.

"We don't hear anyone else here." I laughed at that assumption. For vampires that still follow the old ways, they didn't really think outside of the mortal realm much.

"I want to meet them, mother." That one word warmed my heart as I kissed his forehead before turning to the doors and calling out.

"Mother! Aunt Selene! Uncle Ares! You can show yourselves now!" With each poof and appearance, the gasps and hush that fell over the kings and the guard that was present were astounding. I laughed as I led a stunned Alec to my waiting family.

"Alec, this is your grandmother, the goddess Hecate." We laughed a bit as his eyes went wide.

"My how you have grown, and so handsome too. Just like your grandfather at this age. And please, just call me Hecate, grandmother makes me sound old." I rolled my eyes at her. Considering she always hated bringing up my dad and now she compares them. _Really mother?_

"Sister, you are old. A title doesn't change that fact. Now stop embarrassing the boy." I finally let go of Alec's hand as I embraced my uncle and thanked him for trying to get my mother to stop. "My little warrior has finally found her family, so we need to celebrate!" I laughed at his antics. My son was finally starting to adjust to the shock of our family when a cough broke our moment and he seemed to snap back into his place as a guard making me sigh. Before I could say anything, Selene spoke first.

"Yes, my child?" As she addressed them, I turned and saw everyone else in the room kneeling and I had to stifle a chuckle as they avoided looking at our group.

"It is an honor to have your graces in our home, but why are you all here?" _Did he not pay attention to anything?_ I looked at my aunt who looked as confused as I felt.

"Get up children, we are here because this is a joyous day for our family. My niece has finally been reunited with her children, speaking of where is Jane Ann? She should be here as well." _Knowing how stubborn she was as a child she is probably going to want no part of this little reunion, as much as that hurts me to think._

"She is in her room. Santiago, go and tell her she is to come here at once." The other man finally spoke and as I made eye contact with him, I felt that same little spark as I did with Aro. _What in the world is going on?_ I was even more confused as he reached a hand out to Aro. _Maybe_ _Aro_ _has one of these gifts that spoke about?_ What was more troubling was that Aro glanced between the man, myself, and the blonde before he looked almost relieved.

"Finally, our mate has been found." Aro and the other man shared a smile but the blonde one did not look happy about the news. I turned to my Aunt Selene hoping she would explain, but Ares was quick to interject.

"No. Absolutely not! Sister, this has to be some mistake. Talk to Ditey or Pan, or the damn Fates, but this is not happening!" With how much my Uncle Ares hates Uncle Pan, him even suggesting him at this time was seriously concerning.

"Brother, you know as well as I do that they can do nothing. Their bond was meant to happen, and there is nothing you can do to change that. And would you really want Pan involved in this situation?" _Ok, what the Hades is going on?_

"Selene, what does Uncle Pan have to do with this?" And before she could even answer, there was another poof and a series of groans from the rest of my family.

"I was called? Little Helena, I see my brother is less than thrilled about your mates. I'd say that it's time to throw a party! Cheer up there sister, two rounds of good news in one day, time to break out the good drinks and celebrate!" I rolled my eyes as he stumbled. Even if he didn't have a bottle in his hand, his state of undress was enough to wish he hadn't shown up right now. Don't get me wrong, I love my uncle and he was a wonderful teacher of nature, but he was also the god of sexuality and I sometimes wonder if it shouldn't have been the god of alcohol.

"Uncle, why are you here? Isn't there some mortal that is more important than this?" _Please go without embarrassing me more._

"Nope! Besides, why bother the mortals when there are plenty of immortals here who don't get tired as easily?" _Oh for Zeus' sake!_

"Brother, this is not the time nor place for your drunken antics. Go home." My mother can definitely be scary when she wants to be.

"Fine, Lena I'll visit later." I cut him off before he could say anything else.

" _Sober_." I gave him a very pointed look and he held his hands up in mock surrender and left.

"You asked to see me, Masters?" A blonde girl came in behind Santiago And I instantly knew she was my Jane Ann. She had more of my features but her father's blonde hair. I was a little thrown off as she eyed me wearily before glaring at Alec.

"It seems, my dear, that your mother has finally found her way here to you." And there's the hesitance that I knew she would have. But her words hurt more than the look she gave me.

"I don't know this woman, nor do I want to. She is no mother of mine." And just like that, my worst fears came true. I don't really know what happened next, but my eyes welled up as my legs gave out underneath me and everything went dark.

***********************************************************************************************

_"Helena, stay with us, sweetheart. Come on sweet girl."_ I knew my mother was speaking but she sounded so muffled.

What's happening to her? Mother!" _My sweet Alec._

_"Lena, you need to stop fighting your immortality."_ Do I want to?

"Why is she fighting her immortality?" _Aro_ _? When did he get over here?_

_"A mother's broken heart. She spent over three hundred years searching for them and fearing the worst of outcomes. Now that that has come to pass, her body is fighting her subconscious. She is fighting the will to live. The only other time she was this bad was the day she was forced to send them away."_ Stupid husband. Thank you, Hades for personally making him burn for eternity.

"How aware is she during this?" _Not sure who that voice belongs to, but it sounds nice._

"Marcus are you suggesting -" Aro didn't finish the question before he was interrupted.

"If she isn't responding verbally, it doesn't hurt to try does it?" _So the voice is named Marcus then. I like his voice. It's very soothing._

_"If you think it might work then try it. She spent days like this last time."_ It was only two days, not even half a week. I felt a spark against my arm from a hand before there was a push into my conscious mind.

"Hello to whoever is poking around in my head, even though it isn't polite to do so without permission. Can you politely remind my mother that it was only two days and to stop exaggerating please?" I heard Aro chuckle, so I guess he is the one in my head.

"She has asked me to say that it was only two days and has asked that it not be exaggerated." I may not be able to see her, but I could almost feel my mother roll her eyes at me.

_"Is there anything we can do for her?"_ Ares, ever the worrying father-figure.

"Someone getting me off the floor would be nice. It's kind of cold down here" This time Aro let out a real laugh.

"She has a sense of humor I see." I could almost hear a smirk in his tone, and I could say that it probably suited him. "She has requested to be moved from the floor because, in her words, it's cold down here."

_"We can move her to the villa. Bella will be looking for her once it gets dark out."_ That's true. And Bella would not be comfortable around this many vampires, that's for sure.

"Would you four like to come with us? I would like the chance to get to make a better impression than I did." I wasn't holding out hope that Jane Ann would want to be anywhere near me right now, and as much as I want both of my children with me I know she just needs time to herself. I can't force her to spent time with me or accept me back into her life, she has to decide that on her own At least my sweet Alec seems open to getting reacquainted and my newly found mates as well.

"We would be honored, amore. Thank you." _Awww_ _._  
  
  
  


Hopefully, Bella won't freak out too much about having them there...


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Big thanks to @MightyWallJericho for the poem at the beginning!

_"Bring me to the brink_

_it down beneath_

_Inside the wings of life_

_We sing tomorrow's cry_

_To be both gold and silver_

_In a world of winners_

_First or second?_

_I bring it to attention_

_We look to the sky_

_and wish we could die_

_We look to the moon_

_and wish for a new tune_

_Closer than first or second_

_We see both in adolescence_

_For one we have reached_

_The other is in our dreams."_

I'm not sure how long I was asleep for but waking up to Marcus' melodic voice reading me a poem is a pretty damn good way to wake up. I let out a content sigh as I rolled over in bed and reached a blind hand out which earned a laugh.

"Nice to see you're awake Tesoro." _Aww._ I tried to crack an eye open before shaking my head and groaning. It's not happening today. Nope! I tried to scoot over on the bed before wordlessly patting the empty space next to me. _I'm a cuddly person when I'm tired and I refuse to change that now._

"You really need to eat something Tesoro." _Nope, not moving._ I didn't move and just patted the spot next to me again which gained another quiet laugh from him. I huffed at him before I finally tried to speak.

"Cuddle." I sounded like a pouty child, but I honestly didn't care at the moment. I can be embarrassed by my action later, but for now, I just wanted to be held. Just when I thought he would finally grant my wish, he called for Aro. _Maybe he will cuddle with me._

"Brother, is Helena awake?" At this point, my sleepy brain gave no care about how little I knew them, nor care about a trivial thing like dignity as I made a grabby hand towards where I heard the voices. Luckily, I didn't have to wait long before Aro took my hand and I felt his presence in my mind.

_"Cuddle?"_ And now he was laughing at me too. They're being quite mean in my tired state.

"Amore, are you sure?" _Again I say mean._

_"I just want someone to hold me. Now someone needs to get in this spot next to me and I don't care who it is."_ To Hades with being nice about it, I was getting needy and I gave zero cares. I wanted attention from my mates. As I felt him pull away from my mind and my hand, I tried to pull him back, but my tired self wasn't that strong. I pouted at the loss of contact as he chuckled at me before I mentally celebrated the dip in the bed and shifted closer to the cool body and laid my head on his chest while snuggling into his embrace. I was a little surprised at the little purring I was feeling under my head and in my own chest, but I ignored it in favor of going back to sleep.

***********************************************************************************************

Time was no longer a concept in my head right now, and the smell of food and tea greeted me as I stirred. I tried to snuggle more into what I thought was the body I slept against, but I was saddened to find that it had been replaced by a squishy pillow. Stretching my aching limbs. I pulled the covers up while I scooted up, so I was sitting against the headboard.

"Finally, I was starting to get concerned mother. It's been a few days since you woke up." _Wait, days? Where's Bella been in all of this?_ I must have looked shocked because he was quick to curb my concerns. "Everyone else is in the other room. They wanted to give you some space so you wouldn't be overwhelmed. I brought you something to eat, I figured you would be hungry after going this long without food."

"Thank you, sweetheart." I smiled as he handed me a plate with cut-up fruit and toast with some scrambled eggs and a mug of my favorite black tea. "So who is included in everybody? I hope I haven't made you all worry too much."

"Our family, Bella, Aro, and Marcus. Master Caius opted to stay at the castle." _With Jane._ He didn't outright say it, but he didn't need to.

"Is Caius close with Jane Ann?" I asked as I dug into my breakfast.

"Not usually, no. She is closer with Master Aro, but he and Marcus haven't really left here except to feed yesterday. Selene had to practically force them to go." I had to suppress an eye roll at that. I'm not really in a spot to judge, but the news still poked at that mothering/mate instinct.

"And you have fed as well?" He nodded as he smiled at me.

"The day before the Masters." My sweet Alec sounded so proud of himself and I couldn't help the grin that spread on my face.

"Good. What have I missed while I was asleep?" _Hopefully, something interesting!_

"Just your friend Bella making calls home, your other friends were concerned about you. Jane has hardly let anyone in her room except Caius. She won't even let me in right now, my own twin sister." I set my now empty plate to the side and pulled my son into my arms.

"She just needs time, sweetheart. This is a lot for her to process and we can't push her to accept this if she isn't ready to. All we can do is give her space and wait for her to make the decision. She has your father's stubbornness that rivaled even his grandfather's." As I felt him pull back, I instantly regretted that last bit.

"What was our father like? I don't really remember him. I get small flashes but that is all." I tried my hardest not to cringe, but I knew my expression gave away too much. "Mother, we don't have to talk about him if it makes you uncomfortable." I just shook my head and sighed.

"You have a right to know. It's just not a happy tale and it has a lot to do with why you were not able to remember me until now. I don't want it to seem like I am trying to bad-mouth him or anything like that, but we were hardly a happy family. While I'm glad that some of the blocks on your memories have worn off, there are some that I hope will never wear off." I had to take a moment to collect myself before I could even attempt to explain our past as a family.

**(A/N: Trigger warning - domestic violence discussed)**

"To start at the beginning, I had met your father at a local event about a month before my nineteenth birthday. He had been so kind to me, and we started courting the following week, much to my mother's dismay. His name was Orion, after the constellation. We had a bit of a whirlwind romance and things had been going so well, and we were engaged after my twentieth birthday. During the year it took to plan the wedding, he had started changing little by little, but I was naive and brushed off the changes as my imagination. Our wedding had been the talk of the town and it was simply beautiful, but after that things started to take a turn for the worst." A cold shudder ran through my body as I revisited the long-locked away memories. A few tears ran down my face, but I paid them no mind.

"He started staying out later with his friends and coming home drunk out of his mind. Then there were nights he came home smelling like women's perfume that was far nicer than anything I owned. I tried so hard to please him all the time and nothing really seemed good enough for him. Once I had found out I was expecting, he started to stay home more, and I finally thought that my husband was truly happy with me. At the time, I had still been forced to practice my magic in secret so when he caught me making a protection spell he went absolutely mental. Started throwing things and screaming at me, and I never will forget, that was the first night that he had gotten angry enough to take the hunting rifle off the wall and pointed it at me saying that I should be glad I was carrying his child because it is the only reason he didn't shoot me where I stood." By now the tears were freely flowing down my face as I tried to keep my voice steady while my shoulders shook with the sobs I was holding in.

"The following months, I was forcibly separated from my family and locked in the guest room. I was only given food so my body wouldn't start to reject the pregnancy. When the time came for me to deliver, my mother was the only one allowed in the room. Little did he know that just after you both entered the world, my mother granted me immortality in order to spare my life from his wrath. But just as sudden as his personality changed the first time, it changed back into the kind and caring man that I had fallen in love with. He was so good with you both and was always willing to spend time with you both. Around your eighth birthday, your magic started to manifest, and things went right back to what I had been growing accustomed to. He blamed me for cursing you both and saying that he should have killed me that night. I tried my absolute hardest to shield you and Jane Ann from his anger by keeping us away from the house as much as possible, but whenever I tried to take his negative attention from you both he got more and more physical." I subconsciously rubbed a small scar on the side of my arm, a reminder from him that he didn't care about hurting me.

"For all his problems, the only good thing was that he never laid a hand on me while I was pregnant. The eve of your tenth birthday, you both had been running around the house excited for your party the next day and were using your magic while your father was at work. I was too busy laughing along with you to hear the door slam closed, but what I did remember was the sound of a vase hitting the floor and shattering before things were deathly quiet. I still remember the look on his face as he stared at the mess before a calm washed over his features as he walked into the living room and took that same rifle at the wall and started waving it around. I had barely managed to get you both out of the back door and had you call for our family before I felt the searing pain in my arm as the shot rang out. We had just barely made the tree line out of firing range when Selene, Nyx, and Ares found us. I immediately had them place the blocks on your memories and take you somewhere far away so he could never find you. By the time he had caught up to me in the woods, I was alone, so he dragged me back to the house and locked me back in what had become my cell. He gave me enough to keep me alive, but that was just to keep the suspicions at bay. I spent another year in that hell before my family was finally able to do something. What I didn't know at the time was that your father had his own secrets from me. The day that Hades personally came up to claim his soul was the same day that his true parentage was revealed." I had to pause as I choked on a sob.

"Alec, your great grandfather is Zeus." That phrase broke down the little hold I had on my emotions as I took in the shock and anger on my son's face. He quickly pulled away from me and left me a crying mess on the bed. At this point, I just wanted to be left alone, so I spelled my door closed and warded it against even my godly family. And as I laid in a balled-up mess, one crushing thought rang through my head.  
  
  


_I have lost both of my children before I could ever get to really know them again_.


	8. Chapter 8

_***** _ _**ALEC'S** _ _**POV*** _

_"Alec, your great grandfather is Zeus."_

While I was shocked by that news, I was angrier about what my mother had been through for me. _For us_. She endured all of the abuse and tried her best to give my sister and me a normal childhood, and now Jane was hurting her even more by denying that she is our mother at all. As much as I knew that I shouldn't have left at that moment, Jane needed to get over her fear of rejection and abandonment, and just give our mother a chance to explain. I heard the others try to stop me on my way out, but I ignored them and ran straight to Jane's room and barging in without waiting for her to open the door.

"Jane Anne!" The sight in front of me was something that I had never expected from my sister, who hated showing emotion in general. She was a sobbing mess being held by Master Caius. "Sister, what happened?"

"I remember, Alec. I remember it all. And I was so horrible to her. She must hate me now." I could only shake my head as Jane refused to even look at me and I saw Caius just stare at me, a little unsure of how to deal with my blubbering sister.

"Sister, she doesn't hate you. If you truly remember everything, including the lengths mother went to protect us, then you would know that she will never hate you. She is hurt that you so quickly denounced her, but while I was upset with how you reacted, Mother was the one to understand that you needed time and space before you would be willing to talk to her. Mother just wants the chance to have us back in her life again, do you really want to shut our last chance to have the family that we always wished we had?" She finally turned to look at me and shook her head before sniffling more.

"Would she really want to talk to me?" I just rolled my eyes before walking to them and pulling her up and leading her out of the room with little resistance. Caius silently followed us on the walk back to the villa and I hoped Mother wasn't too upset that I left the way I did.

Or worse, Aro or Marcus being furious.

**************************************

_***** _ _**ARO'S** _ _**POV* Meanwhile at the villa** _

Marcus gaped back at me as we processed our mate's past. I'm guessing that she forgot that we could hear her in the other room, but before I could contemplate if we should disturb them Alec stormed out of the room and ran out while ignoring our calls. Shortly after his departure, her door closed on as a sob could be heard before the silence took over. Marcus sighed as her family tried both the door and to pop into the room but failed to do either.

"She's warded us out completely. Any other ideas?" Her mother sounded as defeated as we did. Feeling sadness flood the mate bond, I tried my hand at trying the door and failed as well before I had an idea.

"Dear Isabella, care to try?" Maybe that little necklace our mate gave her will let her through. To everyone's surprise but my own, the door opened and allowed her in before it slammed closed again.

_Alec, whatever it is that you are doing, do it quickly._

**************************************

_***** _ _**BELLA'S** _ _**POV*** _

I flinched a little as the door slammed behind me as I walked to the shaking ball of bedding.

"Lena?" Hesitantly, I lifted the covers off of her head as I sat next to her.

"Bella, how did you get in here?" I sighed as she looked at me as confused as I felt.

"Aro had the thought to have me try after the other couldn't get in. He didn't really give a reason." An understanding look crossed her face leaving me even more confused than before.

"Your pendant is laced with my magic. The wards would have recognized it and allowed you in. He must have come to the same conclusion." I smiled as she looked a little impressed with him as her tears started to dry.

"Lena, what happened? Alec left here too quickly for us to ask him anything." She huffed a little before finally coming out of her little blanket cave and sitting up next to me.

"I told Alec about my past with their father. He looked mad and left here before I could try to ask what he was mad about." I grabbed her hand as the tears started to fall once again. "I fear I've lost them both now." A small sob left her, and I quickly pulled her into a hug. I can't really explain the connection I felt with her, but I knew that she was what I wish Renee had been like as my mother.

"I don't think he was mad at you Lena. I think he may be mad at how Jane Ann reacted now that he knows what you did to protect him. He probably ran off to find his sister and rant at her about her reaction. He could be back now but until you let down the wards, no one will be able to get in to tell you if he did." As she moved away, I handed her a tissue to dry her eyes as she nodded her head before she waved her hand.

"How much do you think they heard?" All I could do was shrug in response.

We didn't have to wonder for long before there was a firm knock at her door.

**************************************

_***** _ _**HELENA'S** _ _**POV*** _

I took a brief second to make myself look somewhat presentable before waving my hand to open the door.

"Mother, may we talk?" The small bit of blonde hair behind Alec confused me but Bella just squeezed my hand before getting up and walking out as she closed the door behind her.

"Should I put the privacy wards back up?" Jane Ann hesitantly stepped around her brother but didn't look up from the floor as she nodded. I couldn't help the small smile that crept up as Alec rolled his eyes and pulled her to the bed where I sat. With a tiny flick of my hand, I tried to calm my emotions.

"Is everything ok? You left here in a hurry, Alec. I apologize if I upset you." _What are they both doing here?_

"Mother, you didn't upset me. I didn't mean to make you feel like I was angry with you." _Then why -?_ "Mother we both owe you so much for what you've done for us."

"I would go through it all again if it meant that you two would be safe." I took Alec's hand as I spoke. I tried to take Jane Ann's as well, but she pulled back, and Alec glared at her. "Janey, are you okay?" She flinched at the use of my old nickname for her. _Probably shouldn't have said that._

"Tell her, sister." I looked to Alec confused as he nudged his sister.

_"I remember everything."_ Those three words shook me to the core as the horror set in.

"When? Everything -?" I struggled to get out any sort of coherent question. "You were never meant to remember any of that. I had those memories locked away to protect you." I tried one last time to try to comfort her and almost sighed in relief as she finally let me before she broke down completely.

"Helena, I owe you an apology for my previous comment and actions. They were out of line and you didn't deserve to be spoken about in such a way." While she didn't look at me, I knew my daughter well enough to know how sincere she was being. She was never that trusting as a child and that still hasn't changed.

"All is forgiven, sweetheart, but you seem like you have something else on your mind." I barely had time to process before I was almost thrown backward with her on top of me.

"It was all my fault -" As she sobbed in my arms, I knew she was referring to _that_ night.

"Jane Ann, none of what happened was your fault. Please don't put that guilt on yourself. You were young and your magic was still not in control yet. I just wish that I had had the chance to teach you more about our heritage before I had to send you away." As I tried to calm her down, Alec took her hand and started to hum the old lullaby I sang them when I put them to bed. _I can't believe that they still remember it after all these years!_

_"_ _Óró_ _mo_ _bháidín_

_Ag_ _snámh_ _ar_ _a’gcuan_

_Óró_ _mo_ _bháidín_

_Faighimis_ _na_ _máidí_

_Agus_ _téimis_ _chun_ _siuil_

_Óró_ _mo_ _bháidín_

_Óró_ _mo_ _churaichín_ _ó_

_Óró_ _mo_ _bháidín_ _"_

"I didn't think either of you would remember that. You would always refuse to go to bed unless I sang it to you." I laughed a bit at the memory. "You both were always so stubborn once you set your minds to something,"

"That hasn't changed much. Even Master Aro has complained about it." I smiled as I rolled my eyes at his tone of pride in his statement. _Wait, do they know yet?_

"Not to ruin our moment, but did either of the three kings tell you about why they are here?" Alec just smirked at me while Jane looked between us confused.

"Tell me what? What did I miss?" Before I could answer her, Alec chimed in.

"Our dear mother is the mate of the three kings." _I swear he is mocking me a bit._

"You're really staying, Mother?" I loved the hopeful glint that she allowed to show, and I nodded my head.

"Yes sweetheart, I'm staying. Maybe we should include them in this conversation though if you both are comfortable with that." They didn't waste any time in racing to get them from the living room and almost literally dragging them into the room in their excitement. I chuckled as they left them standing there very confused as they jumped back onto the bed and claimed the spots at my side.

"Helena, what is going on? They haven't been this excited in years." That seemed to make them immediately calm down and tense up. I glared at Aro as I tried to comfort them.

"They are allowed to be excited Aro. Do not make them feel less for it." They all flinched at my icy tone.

"I apologize. I didn't mean it in a negative way." As he tried to explain, Marcus was quick to cut in.

"I think what Aro meant to say is that their excitement has us curious as to why." I barely caught the grateful look that Aro gave Marcus.

"They're excited because we get to be a family again, which is why you three are here. If I am to be staying here, it would be nice to get to know my mates and reacquaint myself with my children. Would you like to join us, or do you have places to be?" Without so much as a word, Aro and Marcus sat on the end of the large bed leaving Caius standing by the door looking quite unsure about what to do.

"What would you like to know, amore?" I tried to not instantly melt as I felt my cheeks heat up at the endearing term while I thought over Aro's question.

"I suppose it would be best to start from what happened after we were separated since that would be what started this chain of events. If you two are comfortable with telling me, otherwise we can start with something else." I waited as I watched Jane glance at Aro while Alec looked to Marcus, both for reassurance. _Interesting._

"We were okay for the first few years with who we thought were our parents at the time, but as we got older things started happening to the kids that were mean to us. Strange things that not even we could explain. Shortly after our sixteenth birthday, things started happening more frequently to the entire village. Because we were not originally from the community, our family was blamed for everything bad that happened. Jane Ann and I had thought we were alone one day and tried to practice these powers, but our step-father caught us. Things quickly got out of hand from there and we ended up being tried as witches, sentenced to burn at the stake. Aro found us before it could be carried out though." I tried to wipe the stray tears away that dared to fall as I mouthed a _thank you_ to the man that saved my children, who in turn took my hand and started rubbing circles. Alec took to curling into my side as Jane continued where he left off in their story.

"Things got better after we joined the Volturi, granted we still have had our fair share of disagreements because of the sheer size of our coven. The Elite Guard has become like a second family to us, like the siblings we didn't have. Our bonds here have been forged through three hundred years' worth of missions and comradery in the battles we have faced, though we are still feared and are known as the Terror Twins." I choked down a laugh at her proud tone. _Always so ready to cause a little bit of mischief._

"Between you two, Felix, and Demitri, I'm surprised there haven't been more issues. You four are the closest, but yet you tend to be the ones to be the most cross with each other." Caius commented from his place near the door. _Is he really just going to stand there the whole time?_ Aro's laugh brought me out of my thoughts as the sound kind of startled me.

"I apologize, amore. Caius isn't one for _emotional_ conversations. He tends to be a bit on the socially awkward side, much like Marcus can be as well." If looks could kill, Caius and Marcus would have put Aro six feet under with the glares they gave him.

"Θα πληρώσετε για αυτό το σχόλιο αργότερα." (You'll pay for that comment later.) As he sucked in an unneeded breath, his darkening eyes gave the phrase an entirely different meaning, and I quickly tried to diffuse the situation.

"Πρέπει να μιλάς έτσι μπροστά στα παιδιά μου;"(Must you speak like that in front of my children?) The twins pulled away to stare at me in shock as my mates gaped.

"Mother, you understand Greek?" I just rolled my eyes, feeling a little insulted.

"I'm the daughter of a GREEK goddess. Of course, I know Greek! As well as many other languages, might I add." I paused as the question fully processed. "Do neither of you understand?" As they shook their heads, I looked to my mates who avoided my accusing glare.

"The family we were placed with hated when we spoke in Greek, so we eventually stopped and just lost the use of it." _Now I really wish I could go back and changed what happened._ "They have been trying to teach us, but we haven't had much luck in relearning. But now that the mental blocks are wearing off, maybe somethings will start to stick." Alec looked hopeful as he spoke, and I truly did hope that they would be able to remember our first language.

"Well, now I can teach you as well! We'll have to see if any of our old tricks will still work like they used to." Alec and Jane nodded excitedly before starting to talk animatedly about wanting to learn more about their heritage and the magic that created their gifts.

The fond looks of my mates and the laughter of my children gave me hope for our little family that was slowly starting to fall into place.


	9. Chapter 9

The twins took the lead for most of the conversation with tales from all of their missions with Marcus and Aro chiming in with laughs, but Caius stayed pretty uninterested until the twins turned the conversation onto me.

"Mother, what can you tell us about your past? You told us about our father, but nothing before or after that." I knew they would ask eventually but I didn't figure we would be airing everything out right now. _Sooner rather than later I guess._

"Well, I guess now is as good a time as any. I was born in sixteen sixty-one and my mother moved us around a lot as well as having me stay with my aunts and uncles when she couldn't take me with her. Growing up, I bounced around the most between Athena, Ares, Nyx, Selene, and Apollo. My mother only left me with Pan once or twice, but it was never for very long. He is actually the one that taught me what I know about nature and all the beauty that it held, which is why I choose to draw my strength from the Earth. Poseidon was around occasionally but being one of the Big Three meant he could only visit instead of staying." I smiled a bit as the memories swirled around in my head of the wonderful childhood my mother tried to give me in spite of her goddess status.

"What about your father? What was he like?" Jane asked me, noticing I hadn't mentioned him yet.

"I'll get there. As I came of age, I was allowed to start traveling on my own and I was drawn to settle in England for a while. It was there that I had met your father and things happened and spent six solid years just trying to search for you both without much mind to my own health. Eventually, my family intervened for my sake and while they took up the search I was sent on missions for Selene dealing with rogue vampires that had forgotten their sacrifices. During all of that, I focused on strengthening my magic so I could use a strong enough spell to break through the mental blocks you both had. Around the nineteen-thirties, I was called to Forks, Washington for the first time to deal with a conflict between the Cullen family and a tribe of shifters. I ended up staying with the shifters until their next generation was born and they made the choice to stop their phasing. They were my friends and I tried to help guide them as best as I could. The Cullens staying in the area for a while but after the initial conflict, I never saw them again until a couple of days ago." That seemed to catch Caius' attention since he finally spoke.

"The leader Carlisle stayed with us many years ago. He is a friend." I nodded my head before I continued.

"I was called back to Forks for one last mission, neglect of sacrifices tends to make Hades a little irritable. I had met with the current generation of shifters the day before meeting with the Cullens and I was able to perform the imprint rites. The meeting with the Cullens didn't end up going as I had hoped, unfortunately. Isabella had been dating one of the ones that Carlisle thought of as his children, Edward I think was his name. Anyways, I had met Bella the night before, so we were talking together, and I had offered her some help with something that was causing some negative energy to cling to her. Come to find out, there was a domestic issue that has since been dealt with. My mother had shown up rather unexpectedly, and it caused a bit of upset with the coven leaders. She dropped a bit of news on all of us there, and to top that drama off Ares came with the news that you had finally been found. Carlisle was actually the one to tell me of your gifts, and I can't say I was surprised by them at all." _I knew I was tip-toeing around Jane's question, and I desperately hoped that neither she nor Alec would catch on_.

"So what was the news then? Esme isn't usually one to have a negative thought of anyone." _Crap._ _Aro_ _would be the one to notice._

"Well, I can tell you that you both have met your grandfather before I ever knew him." That left them both confused.

"We have? When did we meet him?" Alec spoke while Jane looked like she was just trying to process the information."

"Tesoro, you said you were born in sixteen sixty-one, correct?" _Looks like Marcus is catching on._

"That's right. You met him a few years after his transition into this life." Jane finally broke through her thoughts.

"Mother, we meet many people. What was his name?" All I could do was swallow the lump in my throat as I tried to gather the courage it took.

"The reason Esme didn't react well is because I'm the only biological child Carlisle ever had. I was born two years before he was turned, and until my mother showed up, he had no clue I had even existed. He said some things in the moment out of shock that Esme didn't like, so she got upset and told my mother to and I quote "take your bastard child and leave" which didn't sit well with me so Selene put her to sleep before I could call on one of my more _protective_ relatives. Right after was when Ares showed up with the news of you two, and after dealing with an issue with the tribe later that night, I came here as soon as I could." Their shocked expressions turned to anger over Esme's words. But none of us expected the outburst that came from Marcus.

"The nerve of that woman! She isn't even his mate! She had no right to speak to you like that, and to insult a goddess -" My jaw dropped as he paused as he realized what he said a little too late.

"What do you mean they aren't mates?" _I mean that explains a lot, but still._

"They are married but I always knew that she wasn't his mate. My gift is being able to see the bonds that connect people and Carlisle's mate bond always trailed off. Their only soul bond is one of friendship. He has managed to fool himself into thinking it is love, but the bonds never lie." _So that was how he knew I was their mate then. Bond sight._ That gave me an idea.

"Do you think that if I got him here, could you see if that bond is connected to a certain person?" _Time to use what the mortal movie called a parent trap!_

"That is possible if the other person is here as well. Did you have someone in mind?" I just smirked before I waved the wards down and called for my Aunt Selene. As soon as she entered, I put the wards back up so my mother wouldn't hear my request.

"Would you mind bringing Carlisle here? We have a theory that involves he and Mother." I smiled as she laughed at me, knowing full well what I was getting at.

"Alright, but you know your mother is going to be mad about this little plan. Personally, I had the same thought as you. She hasn't had any interest in anyone since she made the decision to leave him all those years ago. I'll go ahead and take Bella home since you will be staying here longer than we originally planned for." _Well at least we have been here for a few days, so she did get a small vacation._ As I looked at my mates and children, I sighed as I started to untangle myself from the mess of the bed.

"I need to say my goodbyes and give her something before you take her back. I'll be right back." No sooner than I let the wards down and left the room did the rest of my family take the opportunity to bombard me.

"Little warrior, why did you shut us out earlier? What happened?" Ares was quick to be the first to pull me in for a hug.

"I'm fine Uncle. Just a misunderstanding. But I need to speak with Bella in private for a minute." I said as I gestured from her to her room. She nodded her head and led me into her room as I put up the privacy wards.

"So what's up Lena? Is everything okay?" Bella asked concerned.

"Everything is fine, great even. But, since I am planning on staying here for longer than I had originally thought, Selene is going to be taking you home for the time being. We have some family drama that is about to get worse and I don't want to put you in the middle of it." I paused as she unexpectedly threw her arms around me and caught me off guard.

"I'm happy for you! I completely understand the family issues, so no need to explain. Are you going to be going back to the house at some point?" _Right, I still have all of my personal supplies in Forks. And I made a promise to Sam and the pack that I need to keep. Maybe the_ _Volturi_ _has a phone? I really don't want to have to get one, but it would be handy to at least have access to one._

"I told Sam I would be coming back to help out, but I need to make sure that things are stable here before I just up and leave again. If it had just been my kids involved, I would be going back with you, but they wouldn't want to leave and now finding my mates here. It's a bit of a tricky situation all around. But I keep my promises, and I will still be back occasionally to initiate the new imprints, which you are next to be brought in. I think the Volturi have some sort of phone system, and if not I will find some way to get in contact with you and we can see when the next bonfire is, though I should be back at least once before then." I tried to mentally guess on the timeline, but I have no clue what's going to happen after today's events. I managed to quickly write a note to Sam while I spoke and handed it to her.

"Lena, you're going to be a queen. I'm sure the pack will understand if you aren't around all that often. You need time to get used to this new thing since you have been used to being alone for a while. Take all the time you need to adjust and thrive in this new thing." She quickly assured me and gave me a final hug before I dropped the privacy wards and she left with Selene.

As I rejoined my newly formed family in my room, all I could do was wait with hesitation that my mother wouldn't be too mad about what I had planned.

Hopefully, she won't be too upset with me after this.


	10. Chapter 10

We had been laughing at one of the twins' stories of a past mission when Selene popped back into the room dragging a very confused Carlisle behind her.

"Nice of you to join us old friend." Aro smirked at him and I had to stifle my own laugh as my father's confusion grew.

"What is this about?" He looked around and I saw him flinch a little as Marcus glared at him. _For someone who has been so sweet to me, even I was a little scared of the malice held in his gaze._

"You're here because it's time for your little disillusion to end. As your friends, we have held our opinions to ourselves about this but it ends now. You have been denying your mate bond for far too long in favor of playing house with someone else. Enough is enough, Carlisle." Marcus spoke with such authority and I was surprised by how much I liked the tone.

"This again? How many times do I have to say this before it gets through to you? _I. Don't. Know. Who. My. Mate. Is._ " He growled out and I saw Aro roll his eyes.

" _We know_! Now shut up and listen for once! Lena here had an idea, you are simply here to confirm it. Nothing more." Aro's commanding tone was a bit shocking, but Carlisle seemed more annoyed than anything.

"Fine." _I'm starting to see why Mother never wanted to talk about him._ Looking away from him, Aro gestured for me to proceed. I silently nodded and lowered the wards before calling for my Mother and Ares and immediately putting the wards back in place as they closed the door behind them.

"Helena, _τι_ _κάνει_ _αυτός_ _εδώ_?" (What is he doing here?) She looked as pissed to see him here as Esme was to see her before.

" _Καλά_ _έπαιξε_ _,_ Helena." (Well played.) Ares smirked at me as he realized what was going on. I returned the look before turning to Marcus.

"Well?" He glanced between the two and nodded to confirm the theory we had. _At least that issue is solved, now to get them to not hate each other._

"Can someone explain why we are here?" They were both getting frustrated by our silence, but Selene took the lead thankfully.

" _Αδελφή_ _,_ _αποφεύγεις_ _το_ _ταίρι_ _σου_ _._ _Ήρθε_ _η_ _ώρα_ _να_ _σταματήσετε_ _να_ _τρέχετε_ _και_ _να_ _αντιμετωπίσετε_ _αυτό_ _που_ _εγκαταλείψατε_ _πριν_ _από_ _όλα_ _αυτά_ _τα_ _χρόνια_ _._ " (Sister, you have been avoiding your mate. It is time to stop running and face what you abandoned all those years ago.) And if looks could kill a goddess, my aunt would be in the depths of Tartarus.

" _Δεν_ _σε_ _αφορά_ _!_ _Πήρα_ _την_ _απόφασή_ _μου_ _τότε_ _,_ _και_ _έχω_ _πληρώσει_ _το_ _τίμημα_ _γι_ _'_ _αυτό_ _από_ _τότε_ _._ _Παντρεύτηκε_ _κάποια_ _άλλη_ _,_ _οπότε_ _αυτό_ _ήταν_ _._ " (It is none of your business! I made my decision then, and I have paid the price for it since. He married someone else, so that is that.) Mother snapped and I thought we may have just done more damage than good.

"Mother, this was my idea, not Aunt Selene's. Please don't be angry with her." Her glare softened as she looked at me with my kids on either side.

" _Γιατί_?" (Why?) Mother asked and for once it was a simple answer.

" _Απλά_ _θέλω_ _να_ _σε_ _δω_ _πραγματικά_ _ευτυχισμένη_ _._ _Είδα_ _τον_ _πόνο_ _στο_ _πρόσωπό_ _σου_ _να_ _τον_ _βλέπεις_ _με_ _κάποιον_ _άλλο_ _._ _Αυτή_ _θα_ _μπορούσε_ _να_ _είναι_ _η_ _ευκαιρία_ _σας_ _να_ _διορθώσετε_ _το_ _λάθος_ _που_ _κάνατε_ _._ " (I just want to see you be truly happy. I saw the hurt on your face seeing him with someone else. This could be your chance to fix the mistake you made.) I said honestly. I just wanted to see my mother experience the happiness that she has been running from for as long as I could remember.

" _Είναι_ _παντρεμένος_ _,_ _οπότε_ _όσο_ _καλή_ _ήταν_ _η_ _πρόθεσή_ _σας_ _δεν_ _επρόκειτο_ _να_ _λειτουργήσει_ _._ _Ευχαριστώ_ _που_ _προσπάθησες_ _,_ _γλυκιά_ _μου_ _._ " (He is married, so however good your intention was it wasn't going to work. Thank you for trying though, sweetheart.) She smiled and turned for the door and I had to hide my smile as it refused to open. "Open the door, Helena."

"Mother, please? He didn't know. Please stopping fighting against this." That was when Carlisle finally snapped out of his annoyed silence.

"Cath-, sorry _Hecate_ , what is she talking about? Fighting against what?" He looked confused by everything, which I couldn't fault him for when half of what we said was in Greek. Before my mother could answer, Caius chimed in with a bored tone.

"She is fighting against the mate bond, you idiot. Quite honestly, I can't say I blame her. She should be rejecting you with how we've heard you allowed her to be treated in your own home. Maybe it will finally get through to you." He spoke and my eyes widened as my father growled at him.

"And what would you know about mates? You don't even have one!" _Okay, too far and uncalled for._

"For your information, _Father_ , he does have a mate." He at least looked a little apologetic before his expression turned to one of confusion.

"Who's the unlucky person that got stuck with you?" White-hot anger course through me at his words. Father or not, no one will disrespect my mates. My magic flared around me and all I could see was red as I stalked towards him.

"Lena, _don't_." Ares stepped in between us and set a hand on my shoulder to try and get me to calm down, but it had the exact opposite effect.

" _Φύγε_ _από_ _τη_ _μέση_ _,_ _θείε_ _._ " (Get out of the way, Uncle.) I had one thing in mind and not even Ares, the god of war, could stop me at this point.

" _Amore_ _mio_ _, basta cosi'._ _Lascialo_ _stare._ " (My love, that is enough. Leave him be.) Caius stepped in and managed to pull me away from my uncle and father and held me to his chest to get me to relax a little. He made this little purring sound in his chest and I smiled into his chest.

"Clearly, we need to get back to the matter at hand." Aro tried to calmly diffuse the tension in the room while I tried to keep from attacking Carlisle.

"Fine. So, if you're saying she is my mate then where does that leave Esme?" Mother and I both let out audible groans of frustration and Caius tightened his hold on me so I wouldn't lunge at Carlisle again.

"What about her? She is not your mate. It's as simple as that." Marcus said like it was the most obvious thing ever.

"It's not that simple!" Carlisle snapped and I turned to glare at him.

"So this time you are choosing to abandon your family, your _real_ family, for her?" All I could do was shake my head as Aro and Marcus took a spot on either side of me. _Now I'm kind of glad that Mother never told me about him. If this is how he wants to treat us, then I see no reason to have him in my life any further._ With a flick of my hand, I took down the wards. "Go. Mother and I are not some second choice. So if you don't want to man up and be with your real family, then leave. Selene will take you back and we will have no further contact from this moment on." I didn't realize that I had tears running down my face until a cold hand wiped them away. Sparring a glance at my mother, I saw her eyes were trained on Carlisle to see if he was going actually walk away from us or not.

"Can I just have a minute to gather my thoughts before you crucify me for something I haven't even said?" He said angrily and I felt my mates tense at the hostility before Ares led him out of the room. _Why did this have to go so terribly wrong? That stupid movie made it seem so easy. And yet, here we are._ Standing in my mates' embrace, I felt my children join our little circle and smiled through the tears that fell. If none of this goes right, at least I still have my family to help me through it all. By the time I had collected myself, Ares was leading a distraught Carlisle back into the room. Aro kissed my forehead tenderly before separating from us and offering his hand to Carlisle.

"Oh." Was all he said. My father still wouldn't say anything though, so whatever it is it must be bad. "It appears that the decision has been made for him." That left all of us confused, but as my mother stepped closer to him for the first time since he got here I was left completely lost.

"What has you so upset?" She gently laid a hand on his shoulder, and he broke down. I think he tried to say what happened but none of it was understandable. I saw the brief battle behind her eyes before she gave in and wrapped her arms around him as the venom tears ran down his face.

"Aro?" Marcus pulled Aro from his thoughts and he shook his head before speaking.

"It seems Esme hasn't been very truthful." Aro still seemed to be lost in thought as he spoke which left his statement feeling more cryptic than anything else.

"What happened, Aro?" As his focus shifted to look at me, it seemed to break whatever trance-like state he was in.

"She has apparently known who her mate was, and carried on with an affair. He had the misfortune of finding out the hard way when he went to talk with her about what was going on." I was still confused as he danced around the truth, probably for my father's sake. "He caught them in bed together." _Oh, gods._ I can't even begin to fathom how he must be feeling right now. It's one thing to find out that your mate was the one who left you in your human years but to find out your spouse was cheating on the same day...

"Mother, why don't you show him to the guest room." This time she didn't fight against the idea, and silently led him out. Once the door closed behind him, I dropped the calm facade. "I knew that _κάθαρμα_ was up to something! No one is that cheery and perky without being up to something. I knew the instant that I saw her that she was no good, and I should have listened to my instincts!" (bitch) Feeling my anger rise, I was quickly wrapped back into Caius' arms but this time I was struggling against his hold.

"Amore, now is not the time for vengeful anger. We can't change what happened, only how we respond moving forward." While I was still seething and planning all manner of curses, his words stopped me from fighting his grip on me.

"Look at it this way, it looks like this may have been the push they needed to set aside the past and move forwards." Marcus tried to ease my growing wrath and while it helped, I still felt enormous contempt for the woman.

Only time will tell if this is the start of something new or not...


	11. Chapter 11

Aunt Selene and Uncle Ares had to leave, unfortunately, but Mother and Carlisle still hadn't come out of the other guest room and I don't even want to think about what could possibly be going on in there. My mates finally got me to calm down a bit at least, and we were currently in the kitchen since they insisted that help me cook after I decided that I wanted some cookies to help with my stress. By the time we had finally pulled them out of the oven, all three of my mates were covered in various ingredients from their squabble about who knows what as Jane Ann and Alec laughed at them. _If this is what the rest of my life is going to look like, then I will be happy with that._ As I started cleaning up while waiting for the cookies to cool, my _parents_ finally emerged from the room and my mother smiled at me as I offered her one of the freshly made desserts.

"So?" I asked with a raised brow and she giggled as she looked over her shoulder. That was all the answer that I needed from her. "I'm happy for you Mother. It's about time you did something for yourself." I said honestly as she pulled me in for a hug.

"Thank you, sweetheart. It looks like things are finally starting to go our way," She said, and I glanced at my bickering mates with a smile. "and it's about time that they did." I laughed as she smirked.

"So, do you two have any plans now?" I asked.

"We thought about traveling for a while. He's got a lot of friends around the world, and it would be nice to meet people I don't have to scold for trying to raise the dead again." My mother smiled at me before throwing an arm around my shoulders. "What about you? You finally have your kids back. You have found your forever family with three vampires that love you... What do you want to do now that you don't have to move every few years?" _I hadn't even considered that. No more running every few years. I'm finally free._

"For the first time I think in my life, I don't actually know." I chuckled as I covered my mouth in shock. "And you know what? I feel happy about that."

"That's good sweetheart. I think it's about time we both got the chance to have our happy endings, don't you?" I could only smile at her in response.

"Mother!" Jane Ann called to me with a shriek as Aro threw her over his shoulder while Alec laughed at their antics. Marcus and Caius were having some discussion with Carlisle as they glanced over at us at different times, trying to hide their growing smiles.

"Darling, put the poor girl down." He rolled his eyes at me before gently tossing her onto the couch and I laughed as she glared at him while pouting.

"Thank you, Mother." She said without breaking her glare from Aro as he joined the conversation with the others and Alec sat next to her with a small smile.

"You know, it's a bit odd that I kind of realized that _technically_ we have three generations of our family in one room right now." I pointed out and we both laughed at that.

"Only took us three hundred years." Mother quipped back as we each grabbed a cookie and joined my twins on the couch.

"Any cool stories you can tell us, grandmother?" Jane asked and my mother scowled a bit at the endearing nickname. "Please?" Slowly I saw her expression soften until she couldn't fight the grin that pulled at the corners of her mouth.

"Well, I do have one story that isn't wildly inappropriate to tell you." She said with a smirk in my direction and I groaned.

"Do you have to bring that one up? It happened one time and you haven't let me live it down since. Just let it go already! I apologized already, didn't I?" I pleaded with her which caught my mates' attention.

"You set the bloody house on fire!" She laughed as I felt my cheeks warm in embarrassment.

"You were the one that let Aunt Nyx teach me the spell!" I defended myself as the other sat around us while we bickered. We gave each other a challenging glare and I summoned a bottle of ambrosia-laced wine and two glasses. "If you insist on telling that story, I need a little something to get through it. Would you like a glass?"

"That sounds lovely, darling. But we both know that that won't help you now." She said as I handed her the now filled glass and I rolled my eyes, taking a large sip of my own before settling back against my chair only to find that I was leaning against Marcus' chest instead. "Now keep in mind this was a very long time ago. I had been called away to deal with some mortals who were trying to summon what they thought was a demon, which they only got a pissed-off Hades instead, and I had my sister Nyx watching over a six-year-old Helena. At the time, I had thought that since her powers hadn't yet started to manifest that I wouldn't have to worry about her getting into anything, but that proved to be a stupid idea. I was gone maybe ten minutes before I was pulled back to our house in what is now France, only to find the house engulfed in flames as little Helena was dancing around my sister like she had no care in the world."

"How was I supposed to know that that flower was flammable?" I snapped.

"Nyx should have been watching you a little more closely, honestly. You always did have a penchant for getting into trouble when you were little. Gave me quite a few scares a few times once you figured out that Ares loved to aid you in your tricks." Mother said and I rolled my eyes.

"That was only because Ares was the only one who helped me find an outlet for my endless energy. Besides, it wasn't like you didn't know where we went!" That seemed to catch Jane and Alec's attention as they smiled at our exchange.

"Where was it that you went?" Alec asked and I smiled at the memories that flashed through my head.

"Mainly, I wanted to train with the Amazons. There were a few times we ended up on the mainland of Greece, but it was mostly me wanting to fight with someone who was willing to not go easy on me because I was a kid." I sat my now empty glass on the coffee table as I spoke before snuggling back into Marcus' chest.

"She always was a fighter before she mellowed out." Mother said and we both instantly sobered up at that.

"What changed? You seem so gentle compared to that, it's a little hard to imagine." Caius asked and I felt my body stiffen in response. My mouth opened and closed a few times, but nothing came out and my mother wasn't much help as she sat stunned by the question.

"Tesoro, you don't have to talk about it if it makes you uncomfortable." Marcus calmly stated as my kids looked at me with concern. Poor Carlisle just looked lost as he glanced between me and Mother.

"It's better if we get all this out of the way now." I said as I tried to take a deep breath and center myself before continuing. "What changed was that I met their father. He insisted that I give up my training and practically forced me to distance myself from my family and any of my hobbies that included anything physical. In his words, _a woman has no need for physical strength when a man could do the job instead_." I choked on a sob as his voice rang through my head. "If only I had realized how big of a warning that had truly been... But I did get two good things out of that mess." I leaned forward and took their hands in mine as the tears flowed freely down my face. "I love you both."

"We love you too, Mother." Alec said and Jane nodded her agreement.

"Well, we should probably be off. There is still a mess to take care of and I have a little bit of my own anger to deal with against a certain κάθαρμα." (bitch) Mother said with a smirk and I kind of wish that I could go with her.

"Say hello to Hades and Persephone for me." I said as I stood and gave her a hug before turning to look at an awkward-looking Carlisle. "I guess I'll see you around then?"

"Yeah." He said with a smile at my mother.

"You three take care of my daughter. If I even hear a whisper of you mistreating her, Hades will seem like a vacation in comparison. Am I clear?" My mother threatened them, and I rolled my eyes.

"Goodbye, Mother." Thankfully, she took the hint and after she hugged Jane and Alec, they left with a poof. With just my kids and my mates present, I felt a slight bit of unease settle in my stomach. This is the first time that I was alone with them, and I didn't know what to do at the moment. I glanced at the window and realized that the sun had long since set since I woke up from my _long_ nap. Moving to clean up the rest of the mess in the kitchen and pack up the remaining desserts, I waved my hand to call the bottle and glasses to me. My thoughts were starting to get the better of me and I accidentally shattered one of the glasses in my hand.

"Angel, are you alright? We can take care of the mess, why don't you get some rest?" Caius offered and I numbly nodded my head. As I walked back to my room, I heard Marcus muttering.

"Aro, go with her." There was an understood _watch over her_ in his tone, and I grabbed a change of clothes before heading into the bathroom to change. Staring at my reflection in the mirror, I could still hear _his_ voice repeating the same words over and over again as I glared at the scar on my arm. _No one will ever love you. Who could ever love an abomination like you?_ I tried to shake the voice from my head as I quickly redressed and found Aro lounging on my bed. Feeling drained after the day's stress, I silently climbed into bed next to him and cuddled into his side. Instead of vocalizing anything. I wordlessly moved his hand to my cheek, and I felt the slow push into my mind as I let him explore whatever he wanted while I lied there enjoying being held.

"Darling, none of that is true okay?" He murmured and I tried and failed to blink back the tears that stung my eyes. "I know we haven't truly had the chance to get to know each other, but I know that we have loved you since we first laid eyes on you. Alec and Jane love you. We have the rest of eternity to show you just how much we care about you."

"He's right, mia cara." Marcus said as I felt the bed dip behind me.

"It's just hard to forget when that was all I heard for thirteen years. I spent over three hundred years alone because of what _he -_ " My voice cracked as a sob left my mouth.

_"_ _Tesoro_ _, non_ _piangere_ _._ " Aro tried to soothe me as my tears soaked his shirt. Marcus curled himself around me and I felt the same vibrations in both their chests from before as my sobs lessened to quiet sniffles.   
  


Slowly my eyes fluttered shut and surrendered to the sweet embrace of sleep, content with having my mates by my side.


End file.
